Prep time: 15 mins Bake time: 1 hr
Makes 1 large loaf
This is the cake my mum always made when I was a child. It brings a lot of sweet memories. I have upgraded it a little now to make it even more chocolatey. It is super easy to assemble. The cake never manages to cool completely in our house and is devoured too quickly and the chocolate ganache gets smeared into happy faces of my children.
For the cake:
200 g unsalted butter
200 g caster sugar
40 g cocoa powder
250 ml (1 cup) of whole milk
1 tsp vanilla paste or essence (or rum, flavoured liqueur of your choice)
55 g ground almonds
230 g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
4 large eggs
120 g chocolate chips (I use 65% cocoa content)
For the ganache:
1/2 cup (125 ml) double cream
just under 1/2 cup chocolate chips
1 tsp vanilla paste
1. Put butter, sugar, milk and cocoa powder in a pan and heat up until butter melts. Mix well and allow to cool.
2. Line up baking loaf pan (25 cm x 12 cm) or round 23 cm (9") pan with parchment paper and heat up the oven to 160* C.
3. Add vanilla, ground almonds, flour and baking powder and mix well (you can use a handheld mixer on low or just use a large whisk).
4. Add eggs - 1 at a time, and mix well after each addition.
5. Pour the batter into chosen baking pan and sprinkle the chocolate chips on top. The batter will be very runny. Carefully place in the centre of the oven and bake for about 1 hr - or until a tester inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.
6. Allow to cool for about 5 mins in the tin, then turn out on the cooking rack.
7. Prepare the ganache topping: bring the cream to boil (watch it!), take it off the heat. tip all the chocolate chips in. Swirl the cream to cover the chips. Leave for 2 mins for the chocolate chips to start melting. Then add the vanilla and mix well with a spoon or a whisk. Pour over the cake and allow to cool (if you manage...) before slicing.
8. Enjoy!