I Can't Believe You Made That Cake
This cake is dramatic, delicious and versatile: decorate with fresh flowers for a christening or wedding cake, top with strawberries or raspberries for something girly, or add quartered figs for a Father's day cake.
This cake is dramatic, delicious and versatile: decorate with fresh flowers for a christening or wedding cake, top with strawberries or raspberries for something girly, or add quartered figs for a Father's day cake.
- 2 tsp baking powder
- vegetable oil or oil spray
- 200 g/7oz butter softened
- 200 g/7oz caster sugar
- 4 free-range eggs
- 140 g/5oz plain flour
- pinch salt
- 250 g/9oz butter softened
- 500 g/1lb 2oz icing sugar
- fresh flowers for a christening cake
- strawberries or raspberries for the girls
- 60 g/2â½oz cocoa powder
- 400 g/14oz plain milk, or white chocolate cigarillos (about 75–80 in total)
- 100 g/3â½oz good dark chocolate (at least 70 per cent c melted and slightly cooled
- figs quartered, for the boys
- Carbohydrate 0.917886665079369 g
- Cholesterol 75.1013333320078 mg
- Fat 1.89317333304172 g
- Fiber 0 g
- Protein 2.75471333223647 g
- Saturated Fat 0.634930666485072 g
- Serving Size 1 1 Serving (34g)
- Sodium 57.2931999652054 mg
- Sugar 0.917886665079369 g
- Trans Fat 0.300741999985088 g
- Calories 32 calories
Step-by-step
- Preheat the oven to 180/C/350F/Gas 4 and line a 20cm/8in round deep cake tin with baking paper and brush or spray with oil.
- Cream together the butter and sugar in a large bowl until they begin to go pale. Add half of the eggs and half of the flour and mix well. Add the rest of the eggs, flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking powder and beat for a minute or two until the mixture is uniform. Dollop into the prepared tin and bake in the oven for about 30–40 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin.
- Meanwhile, make the buttercream: put the butter and icing sugar in a bowl and whisk together until the mixture goes fluffy. Add the cooled, melted chocolate and whisk for a further two minutes.
- Once the cake is completely cool, remove it from the tin. Carefully cut the top flat with a large serrated knife. (Eat this bit as a chef’s perk!)
- Turn the cake upside down on a 20cm/8in cake board so that the bottom now becomes a nice flat top. Split the cake horizontally and sandwich the top and bottom together with a 1cm/½in layer of buttercream.
- Spread half of the remaining buttercream all over the top and sides of the cake, making it as smooth as possible. Put it in the fridge to set before doing another layer - this makes it much easier to get neat squared-off edges.
- Gently push the cigarillos vertically onto the sides of the cake, positioning them as straight as possible and making sure they touch the bottom.
- The next step is up to you - I can’t tell you the wide-eyed looks you’ll get when you walk into a room holding this finished cake. Serve with a self-satisfied grin.
Rich chocolate sponge encased in a dense wall of crisp chocolate cigarillos yields an impressive visual contrast when sliced. Adapting standard baked goods for dietary needs often compromises structure, particularly when removing dairy or gluten. Standard butter can be replaced with plant-based margarine maintaining a one-to-one ratio, though high-fat European-style vegan blocks work best to prevent the batter from breaking when eggs are added. For gluten restrictions, substitute a measured 1:1 baking flour blend containing xanthan gum to provide the necessary elasticity usually supplied by wheat protein. Two common mistakes threaten this build: failing to chill the initial crumb coat causes the exterior chocolate cigarillos to slide off alignment, and applying melted chocolate that remains too warm will instantly deflate the whipped buttercream. Whisk the butter and icing sugar for a full five minutes before introducing the cooled dark chocolate to guarantee a stable emulsion. Store the finished dessert in a cool pantry if serving within twenty-four hours, or refrigerate for up to three days, bringing it back to room temperature before slicing to soften the crumb.
