Monday, January 22, 2007

Chocolate Cake Recipe


This moist chocolate cake is covered in a soft, smooth ganache. We served the cake with sweetened whipped cream.

Serves about 8.

We use a 20ml tablespoon and 250ml measuring cup for all of our recipes.

125g butter (if using unsalted butter, add 1/4 teaspoon salt)
100g dark chocolate
155ml (1/2 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoons) water
12g (1 1/2 tablespoons, firmly packed) cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon instant coffee granules/powder
168g (3/4 cup) caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (1 teaspoon natural vanilla essence)
1 large egg (we use eggs with a minimum weight of 59g)
125g (1/2 cup plus 1/3 cup) self-raising flour

Preheat oven to 160 degrees Celsius (140 degrees Celsius fan-forced).

Grease a 20cm diameter (inside top measurement) round cake pan. We use a springform pan for easy removal of the cake. Line the base of the pan with non-stick baking paper.

Place butter, chocolate, water, cocoa, coffee and sugar in a large saucepan over low heat. Stir occasionally and remove from heat when chocolate and butter have just melted. Transfer mixture to a large bowl and set aside to cool for about 15 minutes.

Add vanilla and egg to chocolate mixture. Using hand-held electric beaters, beat until combined. Add flour and beat for about one minute, until mixture is smooth. © exclusivelyfood.com.au

Pour mixture into prepared pan.

Bake for about 45-50 minutes. When the cake is ready, a skewer or sharp knife inserted into the centre should come out clean, or with moist crumbs (not gooey batter) attached.

Cool cake in pan on a wire rack. When cooled, remove from pan and spread with ganache. Store cake in an airtight container. We store this cake in the refrigerator, but bring it to room temperature before serving.

Ganache Recipe
60g milk chocolate
65g dark chocolate
50ml (2 1/2 tablespoons) thickened cream (35 percent fat)

Place ingredients in a small saucepan over very low heat, stirring occasionally. When chocolate has melted, remove from heat and stir until smooth. Allow ganache to cool to a spreadable consistency before using.
© www.exclusivelyfood.com.au


172 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

OH wow that first picture is awesome. I opened the page and here is this delicious-looking chocolate cake pointed at my mouth! I just wanted to take a huge bite!! Mmmm!

22/1/07 4:43 pm  
Blogger Ria said...

Wow-just what I was looking for. Such a simple yet elegant chocolate cake recipe-Thanks,Casey

30/1/07 6:43 pm  
Blogger stuchae said...

Your cake is delicious looking :)

2/4/07 1:29 pm  
Blogger Nelsie said...

Hi..the cake looks really good. I would like to try it. Which chocolate do you use for the cake...is it bakers chocolate? and for the Ganache is it again bakers chocolate or regualr choclate ..thanks!
Nelsie

23/4/07 3:55 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Nelsie, we use 'eating chocolate' in this recipe.

23/4/07 10:49 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

What a great website!!!! Why do you used coffee in this recipe, what does it do to the cake, just curious.

Cheers,Gina H

16/5/07 8:01 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Gina,

The coffee powder just adds a little extra flavour to the cake. If you really don't like coffee, you could just leave it out.

16/5/07 8:22 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello Amanda & Debbie, I tried your chocolate cake and it was fabulously moist!!!! I also did put coffee and it did made a difference to the taste.

If I want to quadruple the recipe how much baking time I need?

Will await for your reply. Cheers, Gina

22/5/07 7:25 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Gina,

The baking time will be influenced by the size of the cake tin. What size tin will you be using for the quadruple mixture?

23/5/07 6:20 pm  
Blogger spongevid said...

I made this cake today after a family friend requested some of my baking skills for them. I made this, I wish I didn't have to give it away.......its AMAZING!

27/6/07 7:40 am  
Blogger drshireenseq said...

yummy yummy yummy...its like love in my tummy....thank you!

4/9/07 9:56 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi
The cake looks amazing! I was wondering if you could please tell me if this cake work with milk chocolate?
Thanks

15/9/07 11:33 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

We have only ever used dark chocolate in this recipe. So, we are not sure if using only milk chocolate would give a good result. If you do try the recipe with milk chocolate, please let us know how it goes.

25/9/07 11:24 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi
This cake looks really yummy!!!!!!
I cant wait to make it but i wanted to know does the cake have a bitter taste as it uses a lot of dark chocolate.
Thanxs, great website

4/10/07 2:09 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi there,this cake looks fabulous, just wanted to know whether the recipe uses salted or unsalted butter?
Many thanks!
awaiting your reply.

4/10/07 5:54 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

We don't think this cake has a bitter flavour. Is there is a brand of dark chocolate that you are happy to eat? If so, we'd recommend that you use that brand in the cake, and hopefully you won't find the cake bitter.

We use salted butter in this cake, but unsalted butter would also be fine to use.

4/10/07 11:01 pm  
Blogger the disappointed said...

This cake looks not only mouth watering, it makes me hungry and want to bite it off from the screen of my computer. Its my daughter's birthday today and she has requested for a chocolate cake for her birthday. Will make it later today and will let u know if its ok...grin...
Cynthia

19/10/07 11:57 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

This cake is absolutely delicious!! This recipe works well for cupcakes too. Thank you.

1/11/07 9:51 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

this cake sounds great if i wanted to double the mixture to make a bigger cake would that be ok and how much more time would i cook it for
cheers

3/11/07 5:47 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Jenny,

If you double the mixture, you'll need to bake it in a larger pan (a 28cm diameter round pan or a 25cm square pan would be suitable). Double mixture in either of these pan sizes should take about 1 hour to bake.

18/11/07 10:31 pm  
Blogger variaas said...

Love the recipe! I'm making a personal sized version for my friend's birthday. I'm going to put the batter in quiche cups and then stack them to make a triple decker with a little buttercream frosting to hold the layers together.

2/12/07 5:56 am  
Blogger Kathy said...

Help! Cake didn't rise and tasted floury. Does chocolate mix have to be completely cold - accidently went to boil point prior.
Kathy

11/12/07 12:15 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Kathy,

The cake should rise due to the self-raising flour in the recipe. Could you have accidentally used plain flour instead of self-raising flour?

The chocolate mixture should be no warmer than lukewarm when the vanilla and egg are added.

12/12/07 9:57 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

hi..i tried some of your cake recipes and its so delicious. i wanna try this recipe for my sons birthday, i wanted to know if i can use fondant icing for this cake? and can i use an oblong cake pan, instead of round tin? thanks!

16/2/08 9:20 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Yes, you could use fondant on this cake and an oblong cake pan would be suitable. If you would like to email us the dimensions of the oblong cake pan, we can calculate the ingredient quantities that you'll need.

20/2/08 12:23 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Delicious!

I have made this twice - once as a cake (using a 20 inch tin) and once as cupcakes (using a muffin pan).

I would not recommend making these as invidual cupcakes, as they are difficult to remove from the pan without falling apart, due to the moist nature of the cake.

This cake tastes similar to mudcake with a fabulous melt-in-the-mouth texture. This cake has a dark chocolate flavour(as opposed to some cakes that use only cocoa).

Rave reviews from the family - I will be making it again and again!

21/2/08 2:04 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thanks you so much for sharing this receipe. It's the BEST chocolate cake. For those who haven't tried making it yet if you think it looks good then let me asure you that it tastes even better.

9/3/08 9:06 pm  
Blogger Unknown said...

My husband who never likes chocolate cakes,actually had a slice today

30/3/08 12:38 am  
Blogger Michelle said...

Cake was just awesome. I quadrupled it for an 11 inch square tin and cooked for about 75 mins and it came out perfectly. I iced it with a chocolate buttercream icing as my husband was taking it to work for his birthday. He had to snaffle a piece to bring back home for me to try before it all went! Compliments came flying in! It has top place in my best ever recipe book. Thanks

4/5/08 5:42 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Fantastic recipe! I loved how the ganache made the cake even more chocolatey... the only problem was that i was a little tad bit impatient and ate the cake almost immediately after it came out of the oven... it seemed a little too wet and not firm enough. Maybe i should add more flour the next time.

Thanks

7/5/08 10:01 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I absolutely adore this recipe. I've made this several times and each time it was a hit with my friends and family. To serve this cake, i like to heat it in the microwave for a few seconds, just so the icing melts a little. It taste divine warm with ice cream

11/5/08 12:26 pm  
Blogger Unknown said...

hello, i tried ur recipe of the cake, it tasted well, but the size of the cake didn't increase as expected, but the cake was ok, can u pls suggest me the reason...

23/5/08 1:29 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Sabila,

The cake should rise due to the raising agents in the self-raising flour. Did you use self-raising flour when you made the cake?

23/5/08 11:40 am  
Blogger Unknown said...

i could not use self raising four, instead i mixed baking powder with all purpose flour, and sifted the flour, i used 1.5 tea spoon full baking powder...

25/5/08 12:55 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Oh my god the looks really yummy..i want to learn how to make cakes as my fiance loves them. I love cakes too.. I wanna try it today..I will let you know how it goes.i hope it doesn't taste bitter because of the dark chocolate.

8/6/08 10:01 am  
Blogger Priyanka said...

I don't like dark chocolate flavour at all. Can I use something else ..please do let me know

8/6/08 10:04 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi ladies, I have a Wilton Butterfly pan that I was hoping to use. The dimensions of the tin are 11 x 8.5 x 2 inches deep. Could you please advise as to the appropriate quanitites to use plus the adjusted cooking time.
Thanks so much, I'm looking forward to trying it out.

12/6/08 8:47 pm  
Blogger skiller_family said...

lovey asked about using something other than the dark chocolate. Well i substituted the dark for milk chocolate and it tasted just as good. I am eternally grateful for this recipe. I have made it 4 times in the last few weeks. Once for a my brother's birthday and I made two cakes and layered them together using the ganache. Once I completed it I decorated it with chocolate slices and and wrote on the top with white chocolate ganache.
It seems to be a no fail recipe and my 5 year old had fun making it with me just yesterday.
It's a little different to my usual chocolate cake but I am finding that I am using your recipe more, and I am thankful that I found this.

14/6/08 9:38 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Anonymous,

Could you tell us the capacity of the Wilton butterfly pan (how many cups of water it holds)?

14/6/08 10:12 am  
Blogger Priyanka said...

i made this chocolate cake..it tasted yummmmm..it was the chocolate cake i always dreamt of making .i ultimately used half of dark chocolate and half of milk chocolate...It didn't gave the bitter taste at all..I loved it ..I don't know how to decorate cakes..I cudn't find any recipes which described on how to decorate cakes..can u please give me some tips????

14/6/08 10:14 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I have just made this recipe, and I must say, it is DIVINE! Thank you so much!

15/6/08 8:45 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Sabila,

All-purpose flour and one and a half teaspoons of baking powder should have been a good substitute for the self-raising flour.

Unfortunately, we don't know what could have caused the problem. Did you make any changes to the recipe?

16/6/08 12:48 pm  
Blogger Unknown said...

Amazing cake !!!!! I love it !
I have tried may chocolate cake recipes but this is the best .It was big hit with the family.Again Ur recepies are perfect. I will try the carrot cake too.

19/6/08 9:29 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Really nice cake! Thanks for another great recipe :-)

In the cake I used Cadbury Old Gold 70% Cocoa dark chocolate and for the icing I just used cadbury dairy milk chocolate, added a splash of milk and melted it in the microwave (on medium).

I decorated it with strawberries too.

Its a moist & crumbly cake that really melts in your mouth when you heat it before serving.

21/6/08 5:18 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Great recipe ladies.I multiplied the recipe by half to make more batter then halved the total to make two beautiful chocolate cakes as a base for a Black Forest Cake. It turned out perfect.

3/7/08 3:16 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

i just want to noe will the cake still taste nice if i didn't put Ganche recipe......

4/7/08 12:04 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Lovey,

Here are some decorating ideas:
Sprinkle the cake with grated chocolate or chocolate shavings (this webpage explains how to make a variety of chocolate decorations, including chocolate shavings).
Place sugar flowers (available from the baking section of most supermarkets) or halved strawberries around the edge of the cake.

4/7/08 9:22 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

To the person who asked about making the cake without the ganache: Yes, the cake will taste nice without the ganache.

5/7/08 11:16 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Oh this looks delicious. And I'm pleased that the ingredients aren't complicated.

I have all the ingredients here, but I use Tasmanian Creamy Butter, is that going to be an issue? Should I get the basic homebrand butter instead?

Thanks :D

16/7/08 4:52 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

If the creamy butter contains about 80 percent fat (80g fat per 100g of butter), then it should be fine to use in this recipe.

16/7/08 5:44 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

is it possible to use cocoa powder instead of dark chocolates for the ganache???

30/7/08 2:58 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Cocoa powder wouldn't be a suitable substitute for the dark chocolate in the ganache. If you don't wish to use dark chocolate, you could use all milk chocolate. Otherwise, you could make a simple chocolate icing or chocolate butter icing.

6/8/08 9:51 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I tried to make this cake, but it didn't bind well with the 1 large egg. Will try it again with 2 eggs. The crumbs tasted yummy though!

10/8/08 9:49 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Do you have a recipe for chocolate icing using cocoa powder, not chocolate?

Thank you.

14/8/08 12:38 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

This cake didnt rise too much, so I made two layers with chocolate ganache and strawberries in the middle...
Turned out quite nice. This is a rich cake, do small slices will do, and since its so moist falls apart easily (mine broke when trying to stack). Yum but beware !

16/8/08 4:34 pm  
Blogger Claine said...

I made this cake on the weekend. I accidentally bought 'orange infused' dark chocolate. I considered going back to the shop, and buying another block - but in the end decided to use it.

It turned out delicious!

Great recipe.

18/8/08 11:52 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

To the person who requested a chocolate icing recipe: Are you looking for a recipe for simple chocolate icing or chocolate butter icing?

20/8/08 10:34 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I made this for my boyfriends birthday last night and he absolutely loved it! He said it was the best thing i have ever made. it tasted so good and I made it with belgian milk chocolate and decorated it with strawberries. thanks for a great recipie!

22/8/08 11:56 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi I made this cake on the weekend using Cadbury Old Gold 70% cocoa dark chocolate. It didn't rise as expected and turned out more like a brownie although I used self-raising flour. The taste was great especially with vanilla ice cream but just beware - because it is moist it can break easily.

26/8/08 12:21 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi
This looks really yummy, and from the comments above, a keeper.
I have a question though. I don't have an oven in our apartment, so would it be OK to steam this cake instead of baking?
Thanks for sharing the recipe :)

26/8/08 7:35 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Marlinda,

Unfortunately, we don't have any experience with steaming cakes, so we aren't sure whether this recipe would be suitable. If you do try steaming the cake, please let us know how it turns out.

26/8/08 9:41 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I am looking for a recipe for a simple chocolate icing, using cocoa, not a chocolate butter icing.

26/8/08 12:16 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

175g (1 1/4 cups) icing sugar
10g (1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon) cocoa powder
10g butter, softened
About 20ml (1 tablespoon) boiling water

Sift icing sugar and cocoa powder together into a bowl. Add butter and enough boiling water to form a spreadable consistency, and stir until smooth. Spread icing over cake.

26/8/08 9:31 pm  
Blogger variaas said...

I've attempted this recipe twice and have had decent results. The main issue is that it always seems to come out denser and drier than I expected. I am substituting self rising flour with cake flour + baking powder.

Does anyone have suggestions for getting a lighter and more moist result?

27/8/08 12:17 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello, I made this cake with white flour before and it was amazing! Is it possible to make it with self raising wholewheat flour instead?

29/8/08 11:04 am  
Blogger skiller_family said...

anon above..

I believe if you use whole wheat flour, the result will be denser, so I think it's better to add 1/2 and 1/2 (well thats my experience anyway)

1/9/08 2:42 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

The first time I made this cake it didn't rise as expected although the taste was great and it was soft. I made this cake again on the weekend for my nieces birthday. This time it came out just as expected. I realised the first time I made it I didn't sift the flour before adding it to the mixture whereas the 2nd time I did. COudl that have made a difference? Just wanted to share...

4/9/08 12:28 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello,

Another yummy success! Thanks ladies. I must say the cake turned out a little crispy on the top, but was ok after adding the ganache. I have a fan focred only oven and baked for 45 mins at 140 deg. Is it supposed to turn out crispy? Anyhow, I made it for fathers day and wrote on the top with white chocolate ganache. It looked great! Thanks again.

Beck

7/9/08 7:39 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Delicious chocolate cake ever! Complement well with Connoisseur Ice Cream Classic Vanilla...Thanks!

The only problem is how to spread the ganache nicely without lines? We tried to spread it swiftly before the ganache hardened...

8/9/08 2:24 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

The cake looks simply fantastic and i cant wait to try it out but the thing is, i have a microwave oven not a regular oven. Could you tell me how i should bake it using a microwave?

8/9/08 4:39 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Variaas,

It could be that your cake flour and baking powder combination is not exactly equivalent to our self-raising flour. If you found the cake too dry, you could try slightly reducing the baking time.

13/9/08 7:24 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

the batter was a little runny... i wasnt sure if it was correct, but it turned out pretty good...

Tip: dnt try using a spring bottom cake tin without baking paper, the batter runs out the bottom. lol i learnt that the hard way

14/9/08 11:48 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Yes, the cake batter is supposed to be quite runny.

To the person who mentioned the crispy top: This cake does have a crusty top. We just cover it with ganache, but you could trim it off if you prefer.

To the person who had trouble getting a smooth finish on the ganache: Was the ganache smooth and runny when freshly made?

To the person who asked about cooking this cake in a microwave oven: Unfortunately, we are not sure whether this cake would be suitable (we have never cooked a cake in a microwave).

20/9/08 4:45 pm  
Blogger picoll said...

Hi, I made this yummy cake for the first time today and it turned out fantastic! I decided to double the mixture, however, the biggest round pan I had was a 25cm - so it took a little longer to cook (1hr, 10min).
When I made the ganache I only made 1.5 times the quantity, but this worked out perfectly to cover the double cake mixture (plus a little left over for a taste test!)
I really liked the way the top of the cake is slightly crunchy - the bite at the top tastes great under the ganache. Thanks for a wonderful recipe :)

25/9/08 10:32 pm  
Blogger emsky_19 said...

Hi Amanda and Debbie,

I was just wondering if I could melt the chocolate ganache in the micorwave instead of using a saucepan. I ask this because in my previous attempts to make it in a saucepan the ganache has come out dry and crumbly.

Thanks for great recipes and keep em' coming!

27/9/08 2:44 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

is it ok to use cooking chocolate?

27/9/08 5:15 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hey... I made this on the weekend... such a simple recipe. Now I can cook and usually don't have any problem but I made two and both of them were dry and crumbled???

Followed recipe and instructions to a T and don't know where I could have gone wrong?



Only thing I can think of is the cooking time... at 45-50 minutes, I put a skewer in and it still had cake attached so I had to cook them both times for about 55 mins...Any ideas?

29/9/08 12:01 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Amanda and Betty,

Your cake is so delicious looking that I've decided to give my first go at baking cakes using your recipe since it's my boyfriend's birthday. I know this is very stupid but do I need to get an electric mixer? Is egg beater OK? I'm not sure whether I've talents in baking so I want to avoid investing too much.

30/9/08 2:30 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Can I use this recipe to make cupcakes? My children has nut allergy so I cannot have anything with almond meal.

30/9/08 9:56 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

We haven't used the chocolate cake mixture to make cupcakes, but can't see any reason why you couldn't do so. If you do try it, please let us know how the cupcakes turn out.

8/10/08 12:50 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Amanda and Debbie,

It's emsky_19 again. You seem to have missed my question as a person who posted their question after me seems to have already gotten a reply from you. I will ask it again so please reply.

I was just wondering if I could melt the chocolate ganache in the micorwave instead of using a saucepan. I ask this because in my previous attempts to make it in a saucepan the ganache has come out dry and crumbly.

Thanks for great recipes and keep em' coming!

8/10/08 5:54 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Emsky_19

Sorry, we missed a couple of questions. Yes, you could make the ganache in a microwave. Causes of a poor ganache consistency include overheating the chocolate, using a different type of cream, and varying the amount of cream or chocolate. Did you use the ganache recipe above? If you used a tablespoon to measure the cream, you could check whether your tablespoon has a 15ml capacity or a 20ml capacity (we use a tablespoon with a 20ml capacity).

8/10/08 10:31 pm  
Blogger sharon said...

Thanks for a great site, love everything i've made so far. Could you tell me the quantities to use to make the chocolate cake & carrot in a 23cm x 6cm pan Thanks Sharon

9/10/08 5:33 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Mei

Yes, you can use cooking chocolate in this recipe. We don't recommend the use of compound chocolate.


To the person whose cakes were dry and crumbly: A few other people have had the same problem. We aren't sure what the cause could be. Did you measure the ingredients with scales? Differences in ingredients could be a factor. Do you live in Australia?

To the person who asked about using an eggbeater: Yes, an eggbeater could be used for this recipe.

12/10/08 9:50 am  
Blogger Sappho said...

This cake looks quite divine and I'm tempted to make it for my daughter's birthday party this Halloween. Normally, I'd just make a few test cakes to be sure it was the right one but this year I just don't have the time, so I wonder if you would mind answering a few questions?

We will be decorating the cake with Tim Tam "tomb stones" and I'm a bit concerned from some of the comments that the cake may not be dense enough to hold up a couple of packets of biscuits.

I also wonder if the ganache hardens enough to keep them upright (that's not such an issue - they can be forced down into the body of the cake without too much trouble).

Lastly, I'll be baking it in a 30 cm diameter cake tin and I wonder if you could give me any tips about what sort of baking time that will need?

Thanks,

Sappho

29/10/08 4:15 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Sharon

Do you mean a 23cm diameter round pan that is 6cm deep?

29/10/08 1:22 pm  
Blogger Sappho said...

Oh, I should have said that the tin is a round tin, 30 cm in diameter and 7 cm deep. I'm planning to double the mix.

Sappho

29/10/08 2:03 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Sappho

This cake might be a bit too delicate to hold the Tim Tams up. Perhaps our mud cake would be more suitable.

We have doubled the above quantities and baked the mixture in a 28cm diameter pan for one hour.

29/10/08 3:17 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

HI manda and debb...the cake just looks awesomeee!! willing to try...
i want to make this cake and i dont have the cake tin, can i use the silicon cake pan instead? will it be hard to take out from the pan?
thank you...

1/11/08 9:45 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Phoebe

A silicone pan should be fine to use for this cake. You may need to adjust the baking time slightly. Do you usually have difficulty removing cakes from your silicone pan?

6/11/08 12:03 pm  
Blogger Heilani Productions said...

Hi Amanda and Debb
Want to know if i doubled the recipe could i use a rectangle dish to cook it in. Would like to make it for my daughters birthday????

6/11/08 5:46 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi all,
This recipe is delish even withouth the ganache on top. It melts in your mouth!

12/11/08 10:41 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Amanda,

Just wondering why my cake doesn't rise so much and it's not very moist inside? Could you give me some tips??



Thanks!
Nellie

27/11/08 10:27 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

hi, im new to this and love the web. did make banana cake which was just great.just baked this ch. cake, but the ganache kind of split. the cream didn't combine with the chocolate. so the chocolate is kind of lumpy and the fat from the cream is just sitting on the side... help. thanx. will try again K

3/12/08 11:29 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Nellie

This cake does not rise a lot. It sounds like your cake may have been overcooked. How long did you bake it for?

3/12/08 11:29 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi K

You could try the following: Return the split ganache to very low heat, add a couple of teaspoons of cream, and stir constantly for few minutes to see if the consistency improves.

3/12/08 11:38 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Heilani Productions

Sorry we have taken so long to get back to you. This cake can be baked in a rectangular pan. What are the dimensions of the pan you would like to use?

4/12/08 9:33 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thanks for a winner recipe. I love the flavour!!! The cake turned out very moist but slightly crumbly (falling apart). I would like to make this for Christmas lunch, so would you recommend 2 eggs to make it more bound, or will that affect the moistness of the cake?

5/12/08 1:03 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

We aren't sure whether an additional egg would have a negative effect on the moistness of the cake. If you try it, please let us know how the cake turns out.

15/12/08 9:16 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I've tried to make another icing with it.......fab
All you need is
Butter
Icing sugar
HOT water
Cocoa
Instant Coffee powder
Just mix all of them together and whala

5/1/09 4:14 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

hi,
i loved ur recepie n tried making it yesterday, this is the first time i baked and did everything exactly the way u mentioned except that i used my microwave on convection mode at 250 deg. the cake was not cooked after 30 min so i increased the time by 15 min, still it was not cooked frm inside but got burnt on the outside. plz let me know what do i need to do, coz i want to try this recepie again.
thank u

9/1/09 10:30 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Did you bake the cake at 250 degrees Fahrenheit or Celsius?

13/1/09 10:32 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi,
i baked it at 250 degree celcius in a microwave only using the convection mode.
thanks

16/1/09 8:06 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

We bake the cake at 160 degrees Celsius (140 degrees Celsius fan-forced). We don't recommend baking it at 250 degrees Celsius. If you reduce the oven temperature, you may obtain better results.

16/1/09 8:34 pm  
Blogger sapna said...

Hi,
I loved your recipe .now i want to try this recipe with 20cm (8inch) square tin.
so in this case do i have to make changes in baking time & temp.?
Sapna

1/2/09 3:56 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Sapna

We recommend you multiply the ingredient quantities by 1.25 for a 20cm square pan. We would use the same baking temperature, but we can't suggest a baking time as we haven't made the cake in a 20cm square pan.

12/2/09 9:56 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi ladies,

I wrote to you earlier saying that i'll try baking the cake again using 2 eggs instead of the one (as the first attempt turned out delicious but a little crumbly).

Well i have just baked it this morning. The cake turned out perfect not at all crumbly... and the ganache...divine. I've tried so many ganache recipes even from top chefs on T.V, but you girls got it right.

Keep up the awesome work that brings compliments to us all.

25/2/09 2:25 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

The cake looks awesome! I'd like to make it slightly bigger, using either a 9" or 10" cake tin. Can you please tell me what adjustments I would need to make to the recipe and baking time. Thanks :)

2/3/09 10:39 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Amanda and Debbie!

I'd agree with everyone that your site is awesome! Now I haven't had a lot of baking experiences and i have yet to try this recipe, but i was just wondering if you guys have any recipes on black forest cakes.? Do we use this chocolate cake as a base? how about the cream+berries in between the layers and top/sides with the flakes? Please suggest i know nuts about this >< Thank you! =D

7/3/09 4:56 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

We don't currently have a recipe for black forest cake. However, one or two of these chocolate cakes could be used to make a black forest cake. For more information, please see this recipe.

9/3/09 5:37 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

To the person who asked about making a larger version of this cake: We would multiply the ingredient quantities by 1.5 if making the cake in a 24cm diameter round pan. If you would prefer not to halve an egg, you could double the ingredient quantities and make a taller cake. We haven't tested the baking time required for a 9 or 10 inch version, but Picoll (above comment dated 25/9/08) doubled the ingredient quantities and baked the cake in a 25cm round pan for 1 hour and 10 minutes.

9/3/09 7:37 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi - If I was to make this cake GLUTEN FREE, would I just substitute the flour for gluten free self raising flour? Or do the measurements change?
Also does any other ingredients contain gluten?

11/3/09 10:08 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

hi, could i use aero chocolate to give it a minty flavour?

12/3/09 7:19 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi have had many amazing compliments about this receipe. I would like to make it as one of the tiers for my daughters wedding cake.
Could i use the Ganache as a filling inside the cake, and cover the outside with fondant icing.
Also would the cake last if i made it a week before the wedding and stored it in a fridge.
Hope you can help me.

12/3/09 9:13 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

hi, thanks for referring me to the link =)

14/3/09 3:55 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

This chocolate cake recipe is seriously so fantastic and I am so impressed! It is everything you want in a chocolate cake (and I know good chocolate cake when I taste it!) and is easy to make. I cooked it exactly 40mins in a fan forced oven. I recommend it to everyone.

15/3/09 6:15 pm  
Blogger Lu-Lu said...

I made this cake for my son's 2nd birthday. I love, love, loved this cake as did all the guests! I'm going to make cupcakes for my birthday in a few weeks using this recipe. My mouth is already watering now! Thanks for the recipe ;)

17/3/09 7:26 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Dear Amanda&Debbie,
I'm a forst time baker, and when I tried this recipe the cake raised beautifully at first. But after the 50 minute is iver, I tested it with a skewer and the centre is very gooey, so I added another 15 minutes, tested it again with the same result. I decided to leave it abit longer but then the centre collapsed, leaving inly about 2 centimetres of cake in the middle :( . I used Lindt dark chocolate, white wings self raising flour and CSR caster sugar. Do you have any suggestion on what may went wrong?
Oh, the cake tastes DEVINE though...

17/3/09 6:10 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

To the person who asked about making the cake gluten free: Unfortunately, we have not tried making the cake with gluten free flour, so we can't advise if you would need to make any changes to the recipe. As product ingredients vary from brand to brand, we could not say with certainty whether the other ingredients will contain gluten.

22/3/09 4:03 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

To the person who asked about using Aero chocolate to give the cake a mint flavour: To make a chocolate peppermint cake, we would add some peppermint essence or extract to the batter and use peppermint chocolate to decorate the cake.

23/3/09 3:03 pm  
Blogger CamillaS said...

I'm not sure if this has been asked already but would this cake be ok if I cooked it the night before I wanted to serve it.

26/3/09 10:13 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

To the person who wishes to use this cake for a wedding: The cake is fairly delicate, so we aren't sure whether it would hold up well covered with fondant as part of a tiered cake. Were you thinking of using it for the top tier? If not, what type of cake will be stacked on top of it? The cake might not taste fresh after a week in the fridge. If you need to store it for a week, it might be better kept in the freezer. You could make a test cake and freeze it to see whether you are happy with the result.

2/4/09 12:55 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Sad Baker

If you didn't make any changes to the recipe and the cake still wasn't cooked after 65 minutes, it sounds like your oven wasn't hot enough. When using other recipes, do you usually need to extend the cooking time?

2/4/09 2:16 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi CamillaS

It would be fine to make this cake the day before serving.

2/4/09 2:59 pm  
Anonymous Lynsey said...

Hey Amanda and Debbie,

I made this cake for the first time today for my mum's birthday it was fantastic!

I will being making it again I can assure you of that

8/4/09 7:50 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Could you please give me the quantities i would require to bake in a 10" square tin for a wedding cake, and the cooking time in an Aga.
thank you kp

8/4/09 6:58 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Kp

We would double the ingredient quantities for a 10 inch square pan. To give the wedding cake more height, we would bake two of the 10 inch square cakes and sandwich them together with ganache. Unfortunately, we can't help with the baking time as we don't own an Aga cooker.

20/4/09 9:53 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

im 16 and im going to try to do this recipe on my own!!!

26/4/09 3:29 pm  
Anonymous Gayle said...

Hi tried cake tasted gorgeous but didnt rise at all was smaller thatn original igredients in cake tin. I used a 9 and half inch tin is this why? Def used self raising thanks!

3/5/09 4:31 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Gayle

For a 9.5 inch diameter round pan, we recommend multiplying the ingredient quantities by 1.5. Hopefully you will get a better result with a larger quantity of batter.

9/5/09 10:41 pm  
Blogger islandg*rl said...

I made cupcakes out of the recipie, a double recipe made 24 small cupcakes. Baking time was just 14 minutes. I added on a white chocolate frosting and it turned out really well. Pictures on my blog here:
http://islandgirl-writes.blogspot.com/2009/06/bday-cupcakes.html

5/6/09 7:54 pm  
Anonymous MaryJ said...

I was a bit disappointed with my cake because it came out a bit heavier than I expected. I also ruined the ganache (too hot). Overall I am still very happy with the result. This recipe is a keeper, no more store bought/packet chocolate cakes for my family. (they tend to send my kids crazy with 5 food colourings? go figure) THanks for another great recipe!!

18/6/09 2:29 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Amazing! I made the cake the night before and put the ganache on the next day. Everyone loved it and had seconds the most fussy child of 2.5 yr old had third helping. Thank god there were enough for everyone!

20/6/09 9:15 am  
Blogger Unknown said...

Hi,


I am a beginner when it comes to any form of baking. I came across your chocolate cake recipe recently and it looked so good that I actually tried it out yesterday, however I’m guessing I must have done something wrong as it didn’t turn out very well. In fact, I feel my whole experience with this was a disaster!!


I did exactly as you described in the recipe instructions but I forgot to add castor sugar when I melted the butter, instead I added it with eggs. I used a hand mixer and mixed the flour for more than one minute, however the mixture was still not ‘loose’ or free-flowing as yours seemed to be. I used all the ingredients exactly as mentioned expect for the egg which was 63 gm.


I used a 22cm round pan and baked in a pre-heated oven at 160C for 45 mins. But for some reason the cake didn't rise (I used self raising flour) and the whole cake came out cracked.

Can you help advise where you think I went wrong and what I should pay more attention to in future.

Also, how do we decide the size of the pan(even depth), the different temperatures & baking time for different mixes & different pans. Can I use an 18 cm square pan instead. Really appreciate any help or advise you can give me.
Best Regards,
Sindhu

20/6/09 10:34 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi there! I love your recipes there are just awesome and simple! I've tried this chocolate cake twice and both times it was very soft and light and crumbly! it tasted absolutely delicious and just like heaven but it was slightly too crumbly..how can i make it stay more in 1 piece when serving it?

26/6/09 12:55 pm  
Blogger Unknown said...

hi,
I tried ur cake again but still a disaster. This time I did exactly as u described. I used a hand mixer and mixed the flour for more than one minute, however the mixture was still not free-flowing as yours seemed to be. I used all the ingredients exactly as mentioned(in grams). I used 8 3/4 inch* 6 inch round pan. This time cake did rise but it came down when I took it out from the oven. Cake was ready in 40 minutes time. Pl help

1/7/09 11:42 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi i wanted to make the moist chocolate cake in a 30cm round tin, should i make 3 times or 4 times the quantity?

7/10/09 11:54 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi, I love your recipes. I made this cake today but sadly mine did not rise much either :-(. I followed your recipe, double-checked I also used SR flour. Not sure what I am doing wrong as it was only an inch high. Maybe I'll just have to 1.5 times the mixture to compensate.

25/10/09 11:58 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I made this cake as it seemed easy & looked good.
Disaster! All crumbly :-(
In 15yrs i've never had a cake do this! No idea what happened

3/1/10 9:04 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

hi
your cake recipe is really amazing i just wanna know if i can make it without putting eggs or is there any alternative for egg
thanks

4/1/10 1:29 pm  
Blogger Wendy said...

Thankyou Amanda & Debbie for the 'Best Recipe" for chocolate cake I have ever baked & tasted. You girls are awesome. I kept the cake in the fridge and zapped in the microwave for 15 secs before serving gives it a just made touch and the Ganache is warm and yummy.

13/1/10 9:51 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thank you Amanda & Debbie! Your chocolate cake recipe could not be any easier, and it turned out beautiful! I made it for a farewell and it was a hit with everyone! A most delicious cake, very moist, like a mud cake but light in texture. The only two thing I altered in the recipe was the eggs, using two instead of one! Tracy

27/1/10 2:57 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi
I tried this cake two times. The cake was really tasty but it didn't set. Like i wasn't able to cut a piece as it disintegrated/ turned powdery.. i dont know wht im doing wrong. please help!

15/2/10 7:37 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi guys, i absolutely love your recipes! amazing! I was wondering, can i substitute white choc for this one? would it produce the same results??

12/3/10 11:09 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

This recipe is absolutely amazing!! I had to look for something for my kids as they wanted to make one today. My 13 year old daughter practically baked it with my supervision..it's easy and devine!! Thanks for sharing this. Will surely use it again and again! Maybe it would be better if it's cold but we ate it warm and it's delicious! Thanks again guys!!

16/4/10 7:50 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

hi there! i made this cake last week and..it...was...so....good!!!!!!! i cant believe how nicely it came out of the oven! used lindt 70% cocoa and the milk choco variation...i am wonderin if peanut butter frosting will work too?

7/7/10 9:13 pm  
Anonymous Deb said...

I just make your cake. It was delicious! I will be making this again. The ganache was sensational. I topped the cake with fresh raspberries for birthday cake. Thanks again for the great recipes.

16/7/10 6:12 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi, I read a lot of comments prior to making this cake and it really didn't rise much. I sifted the flour, did everything as advised and instead of a birthday cake, I'll have to promote it as a slice !

7/9/10 3:30 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Wow! this cake was a surprise :) it initially looked like a bowl of liquid :s but came out of the oven looking like the traditional chocolate cake i was expecting. Only makes a small cake so for a group of people you would have to make 2 or double the quantity. Easy to make. Good stuff!

20/10/10 2:32 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Wow...thank you...finally I can bake something...tastes incredible...I might use more milk chocolate instead of dark in the ganache next time tho. Sooooo good :)

22/10/10 2:10 pm  
Blogger Unknown said...

Thanks girls for another winner! Had good rise in the oven (fan @ 140 for 45 mins) but dropped back a little on cooling. No problem - absolutely delicious. Rich, moist with a real hit of chocolate (used Plaistowe 70%). Made the day before and left in zip-lock bag at room temp overnight. Frosted this morning. May not look like a huge cake, but easily served 10. Rave reviews from all. Cheers!

22/10/10 5:49 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

This cake is unbelievable...I have made it many times. If you follow the recipe exactly, it will turn out perfectly.
I double the recipe, make two cakes, and then split each cake so I have 4 layers. I sandwich them together with kahlua cream (just whip a tablespoon of kahlua in with the cream). on top of the ganache, i put a large dob of cream, a few strawberries and chocolate leaves. (paint melted chocolate on the underside of rose leaves, set til hard, then peel the leaf off).
around the bottom i put meringue kisses sandwiched with strawberry cream (crush up some dried strawberries and stir into whipped cream)
cheers, Erin

23/10/10 1:35 pm  
Anonymous Emma Campbell said...

Very very yummy, but every time I cook it, it seems to crumble staright away. I dont know what I am doing wrong. Thanks for the website I cook only using your recipes and its always a treat and people think I am some fantastic cook. When in actual fact its just you guys. So thanks again! (Also do you have any idea what substitue for cheddar cheese I can find in Italy?

1/4/11 11:44 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

After 5 years of living in Canada (I am a kiwi) and totally sick of heavy North American cakes... I realised that self-rising flour might be the key to making a downunder cake. I googled self-rising flour chocolate cake and got this recipe. I am so pleased I did. I made this last night so totally awesome. Topped with a white chocolate cream cheese icing... absolutely addictive! thanks guys!

2/4/11 1:22 am  
Anonymous Fee said...

I have made this cake three times now. The first time it didn't rise very well, but still tasted divine. The next times I made it I multiplied the ingredients by half again (using the same size cake tin) and cooked it for 50 minutes on 140 degrees (fan forced) and it worked out perfectly. I also used milk chocolate instead of dark with no issues. Thank you for the great recipe, this is an absolute keeper.

9/4/11 5:10 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi, the cake looks delicious but I was wondering if I could use milk instead of water and if it would still taste as good.

16/7/11 10:25 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi, I was wondering if the cake would still taste if it was made a whole day ahead and should I keep it in the fridge?thank you

16/7/11 8:09 pm  
Blogger Jenny85 said...

I just made this cake for a lunch with friends. I didn't have enough butter so I used 1/3 cup of peanut butter instead and I used milk chocolate. It turned out fantastic. Very yummy indeed.

22/7/11 6:48 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi amanda and debbie
If i used milk instead of water would that be ok?

22/7/11 8:22 pm  
Anonymous Monique said...

I made this cake yesterday for my grandad's birthday and it has got to be one of the yummiest chocolate cakes I have ever eaten!

It was so moist and delicious. I did it with a chocolate buttercream though because my silly sisters don't like ganache.

Great recipe, all the recipes I have tried from your site have just been amazing :) I would definitely buy a cookbook brought out by you ladies :)

3/9/11 5:45 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Just baked it and so rich and yum. Can barely taste the coffee. Thanks!

11/10/11 8:46 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Is it ok to use milk chocolate instead of dark chocolate? Thanks.
Poppy

22/10/11 1:08 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I have to make this cake for about 60 people. Will I be able 2 get the quantities and the baking time pls? Thnx. I have made this recipe tons of times before and it has never failed me. It is soooo delicious!!!!

27/11/11 2:35 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Made this last night for a party with 20 people... little slices for everyone.

Everyone LOVED it!!!! Raging success!!! Cooked for only 45 min in a 9 in springform pan with 160 C. Very moist.

14/2/12 10:04 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

The best cake i have ever made! So moist and delicious. Thanks :)

20/4/12 10:15 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

very nice recipe indeed..baked last week..tasted amazing however my cake was only around 1cm t(height) thick ...was it supposed to rise any higher? the one in the picture looks bigger

21/5/12 10:58 pm  
Anonymous Cheryl said...

I was asked to make a cake for one of the girl's birthday at work, she requested a banana cake, I had never made one so I googled and came upon your site, I tried it and it was an absolute hit. Next another girl requested a chocolate cake and I make this one, it was fabulous and I made one for my family. Ever since, I have been requested to make this cake over and over again. Today I am making it for my son's 11th birhtday and I thought I should post a comment as I am a fan of your site and must say that every other recipe that I have tried has never failed. Keep up the good works, ladies, I love this site. It always works and the instructions are clear and simple.

23/9/12 10:35 pm  
Anonymous Helen S said...

Hi

Is it appropriate to fill this cake with cream and jam ? Will it hold together ?

12/10/12 12:32 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thank you so much for a wonderful recipe! Made this for my hubby's birthday and he said it was the best cake he's had in years :)
So yummy! Thanks again.

18/2/13 7:50 pm  
Blogger TSRA said...

hi...i make it twice this yummy cake but i reduced the sugar a bit. i bake for the old folks home & another one is for my son's b'day.
i would definitely love to share around friends & family yr recipe. cheers :)

linda(kuala lumpur, malaysia)

18/2/13 11:02 pm  
Blogger Anonymous said...

Hi there. Cake looks amazing. I just have one question. Do you know what kind of cocoa powder you used? Is it natural or Dutch-Processed? Thanks!

27/6/13 3:19 pm  
Blogger Ummehani said...

Moistest cake of'em all .. And super taste .. I think the taste came also because i used cadbury cocoa .. Nonetheless .. A perfect one

8/3/16 9:54 pm  

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