What I have loved most about going onto “social media” with my little “Passionate Pantry”, is the generosity of others in sharing their own recipes, or recipes that they have discovered and love making!
So this post is thanks to Peter, a follower of Tenina’s FB page who posted this recipe in response to someone asking for a cake worthy enough to present to a “Masterchef” work function. Hence the decision to call this “Peter’s Chocolate Cake”!
At the time Peter explained that this is a huge cake that he has made many times, and when I quickly scanned the ingredients I knew straight away that I wanted to make it too … but half the size! So rest assured, if you wish to make this as per the original recipe (see here) you can double the ingredients and follow the conventional method with great success (alas too much batter for our blessed Thermomix).
I have chosen to use Dutched cocoa in this cake for its fuller flavour and darker colour, and I want to acknowledge upfront that there is a lot of sugar used for this special occasion cake, but the one thing I have learned over time in baking is that: sugar = moisture, so if you decide to reduce the sugar you may not end up with a lovely moist cake (I use Billington’s unrefined golden caster sugar which is readily available at grocery stores).
I initially made the frosting in the Thermomix (melted it, then stored the ™ bowl in the fridge to allow frosting to firm up before whipping with the butterfly), and whilst it worked, I lost a lot of frosting as it became quite thick and therefore difficult to get off the base of the bowl and butterfly. So with my next attempt I used the microwave and my small hand held beater making the process super simple, clean and easy (if you don’t have a hand held electric beater they are very inexpensive, and a wonderful item to have available so I would highly recommend one).
I have given you both the microwave and Thermomix options for melting the frosting, before cooling and whipping with the electric beater.
I have made the frosting using a combination of dark and milk as described in the recipe, as well as all dark chocolate and liked both … so use your preference (for me it is all dark chocolate).
At the time Peter explained that this is a huge cake that he has made many times, and when I quickly scanned the ingredients I knew straight away that I wanted to make it too ... but half the size! So rest assured, if you wish to make this as per the original recipe (see main post for link) you can double the ingredients and follow the conventional method with great success (alas too much batter for our blessed Thermomix).
I have chosen to use Dutched cocoa in this cake for its fuller flavour and darker colour, and I want to acknowledge upfront that there is a lot of sugar used for this special occasion cake, but the one thing I have learned over time in baking is that: sugar = moisture, so if you decide to reduce the sugar you may not end up with a lovely moist cake (I use Billington’s unrefined golden caster sugar which is readily available at grocery stores).
I initially made the frosting in the Thermomix (melted it, then stored the ™ bowl in the fridge to allow frosting to firm up before whipping with the butterfly), and whilst it worked, I lost a lot of frosting as it became quite thick and therefore difficult to get off the base of the bowl and butterfly. So with my next attempt I used the microwave and my small hand held beater making the process super simple, clean and easy (if you don't have a hand held electric beater they are very inexpensive, and a wonderful item to have available so I would highly recommend one).
I have given you both the microwave and Thermomix options for melting the frosting, before cooling and whipping with the electric beater.
I have made the frosting using a combination of dark and milk as described in the recipe, as well as all dark chocolate and liked both … so use your preference (for me it is all dark chocolate).
- 80g Dutched cocoa
- 200g water just off the boil
- 250g butter, room temperature and cut into cubes
- 500g golden caster sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 x 60g eggs, room temperature
- 300g self raising flour
- 80g plain flour
- 1 tsp sea salt flakes
- ½ tsp bi-carb soda
- 310g buttermilk / or 230g whole milk with 80g plain yoghurt
- 150g dark chocolate chopped into small pieces
- 100g milk chocolate chopped into small pieces
- 90g butter, room temperature, cut into cubes
- 1 tsp sea salt flakes
- 1 tsp light olive oil
- Boil kettle
- Place a jug on top of TM bowl and weigh in cocoa
- Weigh in hot water over the cocoa (be careful … ensure the jug is steady), remove jug and stir with a fork to mix together
- Put aside for 30 minutes to cool a little (set a timer)
- Preheat oven 150 degrees fan forced and place rack into middle of oven
- Grease and line a 24cm round cake time (base measurement)
- Once 30 minutes has passed place butter, sugar and vanilla into TM bowl and blend 1 minute / speed 4
- Stir mix around, insert butterfly then blend again 1 minute / speed 4
- Commence TM on speed 3 and add eggs one at a time through hole in lid … this should take between 30 to 40 seconds, stir mix around
- Add flours, salt and bi-carb soda and mix 10 seconds / speed 3
- Scrape around bowl, add buttermilk (or milk and yoghurt) and cocoa mixture and blend 20 seconds / speed 3
- Scrape around bowl and blend again 10 seconds / speed 3
- Pour mixture into baking tin evening out the top
- NB: I always keep my butterfly in the bowl whilst I am pouring out a cake batter into a baking tin, I scrape around it with a flexible spatula to get as much out of the bowl as I can … then to remove the last of the mixture off the butterfly, I return my bowl to the carousel and spin the butterfly on speed 4 for a couple of seconds … all the mix on it will spin off to the sides of the bowl, I then remove the butterfly (which no longer has any batter on it) and scrape the bowl with my flexible spatula to remove the rest of the batter
- Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, turn cake around and continue for another 15 minutes (it has baked now for a total of 1 hour 30 minutes)
- Check to see if a skewer inserted into centre comes out clean, and if not continue for another 5 minutes, then recheck and continue at 5 minute intervals until done (it took exactly 1 hour 40 minutes in my oven but be guided by your tester at 1 hour 30 minutes)
- Remove cake from oven and allow to cool for 30 minutes before inverting onto a cake rack to cool completely before frosting
- Place all the ingredients into a medium mixing bowl and microwave on high at 20 second intervals, stirring between each interval until fully melted (this will take only a couple of minutes depending on the size of your chocolate pieces so make them small)
- Once fully melted, place container into the fridge to firm up … check every 15 minutes or so as you don’t want the chocolate to go solid, just firm up enough to whip
- Remove container from fridge and whip the mix with a hand held electric beater for three minutes or until light and fluffy
- Spread frosting over cooled cake and leave plain, or sprinkle with decoration of choice (chocolate shards, rose petals, etc.)
- Keeps well for a few days
- Place all the ingredients into TM bowl and heat 4 minutes / 50 degrees / speed 3, scraping after 2 minutes to ensure that all the chocolate is in the base of the bowl
- If not completely melted continue for another 1 minute / 50 degrees / speed 3
- Once fully melted pour chocolate mix into a medium sized bowl and place into the fridge to firm up … check every 15 minutes or so as you don’t want the chocolate to go solid, just firm up enough to whip
- Remove container from fridge and whip the mix with a hand held electric beater for three minutes or until light and fluffy
- Spread frosting over cooled cake and leave plain, or sprinkle with decoration of choice (chocolate shards, rose petals, etc.)
- Keeps well for a few days
Thank you sooooo much for the Thermie conversion Gina…. it looks like my persistent partner is going to get her wish of a regular batch of this in the future 🙂
The original recipe and method was a *monster* to do but, as you found out, oh so worth it 😉 Now, thanks to you, everybody can enjoy this with minimal effort.
Thanks again Gina… you’re a gem 🙂
Totally my pleasure Peter … but I would be so interested to see if this version stacks up against the “conventional” method as I haven’t experienced that … so when you get to make the cake in the “thermie” would you mind please letting me know. Having said that however, if it is anything close to the ones we have had with this method, it would be delicious! Everyone loves it! So good of you Peter to go to all that trouble of posting on Tenina’s page to help another person out … that tells me alot about you!!! Happy baking xo Gina