Chocolate and clementine heaven, oops, I mean, cake

Category: , , By panda_eyed

I sometimes get the occasional urge to bake, and that's what I did this weekend. I had been a two-day chocolate splurge already but, finding it still unsatiated, I decided that what I needed was a reeeeeally chocolate-y chocolate cake, with reeeeally chocolate-y chocolate frosting.


I warn you, this cake is extraordinarily good and HIGHLY addictive. At no time whilst making it should you attempt to put your face in the glossy melted chocolate mixture, not least because you'll contaminate the cake (not to mention burning your face). This will be extrEMEly hard to do, so a LOT of self-restraint will be called upon.


Tip: Make sure that you're the one who makes the chocolate frosting, so that you get first dibs on the saucepan afterwards. This will be messy stuff, as you'll want to get EVERY single smidgen of sauce from the bottom of the pan. It's really THAT good. I had chocolate on my forehead -- if my tongue where that long, I'd have licked that off too. I could happily eat a bowl of this on its own. In fact, next time I think I'll just skip the lengthy cake process and make this frosting instead.

That's not to say that the cake isn't good - it's more than good. The tart sweetness of the clementine is the ultimate partner for chocolate, as it cuts through the sweet, rich chocolatey-ness perfectly. It is simply deliciousness embodied. You could just take my word for it, or you could try it for yourself. Try not to eat the whole thing in one go though...


I found this conversions page, on Smitten Kitchen, useful for making conversions, especially from US to UK measurements

Chocolate and Clementine cake -- adapted from MyRecipes

350g dark chocolate, chopped
175g unsalted butter, chopped
6 large eggs – yolks and whites separated
175g sugar 200g self-raising flour
The zest of 2 grated clementines
5 small (or 4 medium) clementines, peeled and coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons orange liqueur or orange juice
1/4 teaspoon salt (if you use salted butter, omit this)

- Preheat oven to 170°C. Grease two 8-inch/20cm cake pans and line bottom with parchment/greaseproof paper. Grease and flour parchment, and set aside.
- Stir together chocolate and butter in a saucepan over low heat until smooth, refraining from diving head first into the glossy chocolate-y mixture. Remove from heat
- Beat the egg yolks and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until pale and thick. Add melted chocolate mixture and beat once more. Now add flour and salt and - you got it - beat til smooth. Stir in zest, chopped clementines, and orange liqueur/juice
- Beat egg whites in a separate bowl with electric mixer til foamy. Fold egg white mixture into chocolate mixture one third at a time. Then, pour mixture into cake pans.
- Bake at 170°C for 30-40 minutes or until slightly firm to touch (cracks will form on top of cake). Cool on wire racks.
- Serve (warm if desired, or if you simply can’t wait for it to cool, like me!) with chocolate cream frosting

Chocolate frosting -- Adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients 100g dark chocolate, chopped
150ml double cream
3 tablespoons icing sugar
25g unsalted butter, chopped

- Put cream and sugar in a saucepan on low heat, whisking ‘til sugar is dissolved. Before it boils, remove pan from heat and add chocolate, whisking until chocolate is melted. Add butter to frosting, whisking until smooth.
- Transfer frosting to a bowl and cool, stirring occasionally, until spreadable. You might want to refrigerate yours for 10-15 mins. I couldn’t wait til mine was cool, so mine was more of a chocolate sauce. Alternatively, put bowl in some v. cold water until thicker in consistency.
- You can spread the frosting between the cake layers or just on top of the cake. If, like me, you can’t wait, drizzle over top of cake and eat whilst warm. It's good, I promise!

 

5 comments so far.

  1. Olivia 6:03 am, February 24, 2009
    Gosh, when you said you were back to blogging, you really meant it, and I'm glad.

    This looks like a gorgeous cake. Put on the kettle, I'll be over for some in a minute!

    Actually, while reading this post I ate a little bit of my chipotle chili dark chocolate, mmmm ;)

    xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxxoxoxo
  2. Anonymous 7:14 pm, February 25, 2009
    That looks mouth wateringly delicious!
    I'm sure that a slice would be perfect with a nice cup of tea. xx
  3. panda_eyed 1:44 pm, February 26, 2009
    *puts kettle on*

    It was gorgeous, guys! And went v well with a nice cuppa tea :) Wish you could all have shared!

    xxx
  4. Anonymous 6:34 am, March 02, 2009
    Oh dear. Now you've got me craving chocolate cake.....
  5. LadyHAHA 3:31 pm, March 07, 2009
    i'm drooling on myself. thanks! haha!

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