Jeremy Vincent’s light-as-air chocolate cake recipe
Here is one of the simplest of chocolate cakes to bake. It is light and creamy enough to double as a pudding, but also makes a deliciously rich treat with a cup of tea of coffee.
CRAVINGS for chocolate can at the best of times soothe the soul and provide a delicious treat.
Rather than simply munching on a block of chocolate while you work through the stay-at-home issues currently enveloping society, a quick and easy light chocolate cake can be a true saviour if you are at home with loved ones or family.
My best memories of chocolate, like many people, are related to chocolate cakes — rich, dark and moist. And my years working with recipes have taught me that you can never have too many cake recipes featuring this indulgent ingredient. Chocolate sells.
Some of the more complex chocolate cake recipes deliver their taste sensation after laboriously mixing and matching ingredients, and I tend to steer away from those that ask the cook to create layers of indulgence with complex trimmings and decoration. Ultimately, these sorts of cakes are best saved for a holiday visit to a cafe in Austria or Belgium, where consummate professionals do all the hard work.
Here is one of the simplest of chocolate cakes to bake.
It is light and creamy enough to double as a pudding, but also makes a deliciously rich treat with a cup of tea of coffee.
Kept in the fridge, it will retain its quality for several days — though my experience suggests that one of these cakes rarely makes it that far.
LIGHT-AS-AIR CHOCOLATE CAKE
This needs only a small slice to satisfy. Made in a 20cm tin, it will easily serve 8-10 people.
100g good quality dark chocolate
50g unsalted butter
4 large eggs
100g caster sugar
Icing sugar and grated chocolate, for garnish
Preheat the oven to 150C (130C fan).
Melt the chocolate and butter in a bowl resting over a saucepan of barely simmering water.
Separate the egg yolks and whites. Beat the yolks and the sugar until the mixture turns a pale, light cream. Continue beating as you add the chocolate mixture.
In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff and fold them into the chocolate and egg mixture.
Pour into a buttered 20cm springform cake tin, which has the base lined with baking paper.
Bake for around 30 minutes, then turn off the oven and leave the cake there for around 30 minutes before turning it out.
Allow to cool before sprinkling with icing sugar and grated chocolate. Serve with cream on the side.
Variation: if you are looking for “seconds” after the remains of the cake have been stored in the fridge, melt some more chocolate with a dash of cream and some chopped crystalline ginger. Pour the warm sauce over chilled cake slices for an elegant dessert.
STORING CHOCOLATE
ACCORDING to the experts, the optimum storage condition for chocolate is a well-ventilated area, free of foreign odours. The temperature should range between 18C to 25C. If you have need to store leftovers or have been given some as a gift, you can stored well-wrapped chocolate in both the fridge and the freezer with no apparent deterioration in quality.
The best advice, however, is to buy enough chocolate for short-term needs. Give or take a piece or two for the cook to nibble on after the cooking is finished. If using chocolate that has been stored in the freezer, allow it to come to room temperature before using it in a recipe.
WHICH CHOCOLATE?
YOU can be bombarded by chocolate products in the supermarket — everything from milk chocolate, to chocolate chips and buttons.
While chips and buttons are quicker to melt, it is important to use good quality dark chocolate if you are looking for a rich, dark chocolate cake. Chocolate labelled as “cooking chocolate” will help give a good result. In my experience, unless you want to indulge with an excessively expensive imported brand, the Club Dark is a worthy ingredient for good results. You’ll usually find it in the confectionery section.
MELTING CHOCOLATE
THE double boiler method is probably the most reliable if you follow a few simple tips.
The container holding the chocolate should never touch the water beneath it, unless the water remains below simmering point, otherwise the chocolate risks seizing and stiffening. It is also important not to allow the chocolate to come into contact with moisture.
For a quick method of melting, first grate your chocolate in a food processor before melting over a double boiler.
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