Chocolate Bundt Cake Recipe

Preparation time: about 45 minutes (excludes baking and cooling times)

Serves about 10.

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

Paste to grease pan
10g (2 teaspoons) softened butter
1 teaspoon cocoa powder
1 teaspoon plain flour

Cake
135g butter, softened (if using unsalted butter, add 1/4 teaspoon fine table salt with the butter)
70g milk chocolate, broken into pieces or roughly chopped
70g dark chocolate, broken into pieces or roughly chopped
37g (1/3 cup, firmly packed) cocoa powder
1 teaspoon instant coffee granules
145ml (1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon) boiling water
340g (1 1/2 cups, firmly packed) brown sugar
225g (1 1/2 cups) plain flour
3/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
4 large eggs (we use eggs with a minimum weight of 59g)
188g (3/4 cup) sour cream (about 37.5 percent fat)
2 teaspoons (10ml) vanilla extract

Ganache
160g milk chocolate, broken into pieces or roughly chopped
50ml (2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons) cream (about 35-40 percent fat)

Above: Paste ingredients

Above: Cake ingredients

You will need a 2.8 litre (11 1/3 cup) capacity non-stick bundt pan for this recipe. Our pan measures 24.5cm across the top excluding the rim and is about 7.5cm high.

Using a spoon, mix the paste ingredients together in a small bowl until combined.


Apply the paste over the inside of the bundt pan. We use a small wad of greaseproof paper to do this.

Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius. We find that the cake develops fewer surface cracks when baked in a conventional (not fan-forced) oven. If you have a fan-forced oven and are unable to turn the fan off, preheat your oven to 150 degrees Celsius. Adjust the oven rack to the lower half of the oven so that the top of the pan will be in the middle of the oven (this step is not necessary for a fan-forced oven).

Place butter, chocolate, cocoa and coffee in a medium-sized heatproof bowl.

The butter and chocolate should both be in pieces and at room temperature; otherwise, they might not melt completely in the hot water.

For this recipe, we prefer to use a whisk to stir ingredients together. Add boiling water to the bowl and use a whisk to stir until the butter and chocolate have melted and the mixture is smooth.

Set chocolate mixture aside and continue with the recipe.

Place the brown sugar, flour and bicarbonate of soda in a large bowl. Use a whisk to stir the ingredients together until well combined.

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, sour cream and vanilla until well combined. © exclusivelyfood.com.au

Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture

Use a whisk to stir the ingredients until just combined.

Add the chocolate mixture to the egg and flour mixture.

Use a whisk to stir until the ingredients are combined.

Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake for about 45-55 minutes. When the cake is cooked it should bounce back when lightly pressed with your fingers. Insert a thin-bladed knife or wooden skewer into the centre of the cake to test whether it is cooked through. If the knife/skewer comes out without batter attached, the cake is ready.

Above photo: Knife blade has been withdrawn from cake and has no uncooked batter attached.

We don't recommend turning the cake out of the pan as soon as it's removed from the oven as the cake is more fragile at this stage and may break. Allow cake to cool in pan for 10 minutes, then place a piece of greaseproof paper on top of the cake. Place a cake rack upside down on the paper. Holding the rack and cake pan firmly together, flip everything over. The cake should release from the pan onto the paper-lined rack.

We cover the cake with the pan or some greaseproof paper to help prevent the surface of the cake from drying out while the cake is cooling. When the cake has cooled completely, make ganache (see instructions below).

Using an off-set spatula or the back of a spoon, spread the ganache over the top of the cake. The ganache should run down the sides of the cake of its own accord.

The greaseproof paper under the cake can be used to lift the cooled cake into a container. We store the cake in an airtight container at cool room temperature. If you want to keep the cake longer than a day or two, or if the weather is warm, store the cake in the refrigerator and bring it to room temperature before serving. Suitable to freeze.

Ganache

Place chocolate and cream in a small heavy-based saucepan over low heat. Stir frequently, and remove from heat when chocolate has just melted. Stir until the mixture is smooth. © www.exclusivelyfood.com.au