Day 236 – Twice-baked chocolate cake

I know, right?

I have been looking forward to making this twice-baked chocolate cake since the beginning of my Puff the Bakery pastry course, the name of it alone makes me salivate with anticipation (too much?)

Although I love baked goods, desserts, and all things sweet, sponge cake doesn’t excite me. I can really enjoy a slice, and then not think about it again for months. That’s the main reason I don’t bake so many cakes, as I know I’ll lose interest after one slice. This twice-baked chocolate cake recipe sounded too good to resist though, I couldn’t deny myself a slice of that!

The ingredients were very simple: dark chocolate, butter, sugar, a little cocoa powder and flour, and 7 eggs, separated. The small amount of flour and high-quantity of eggs was going to give the cake a deliciously fudgy texture, with the rise coming from the whisked egg whites.

I was a bit worried when separating the eggs, as some rogue yolk escaped into the egg whites. The internet told me this was a disaster and I should start over as the fat from the egg yolk would mean the whites wouldn’t whisk properly, but it felt like a massive waste. Considering I didn’t have any more eggs in the house anyway, I decided to carry on and figured that even if my cake comes out flat, it will still be delicious. The internet was kind of right – my egg whites were meant to hold their shape, but instead were a bit frothy and wet. Again, I forged on, preparing myself for a tasty disaster.

The cake is twice baked to give two distinct layers of cake – the bottom over baked to give a fudgy, brownie-like texture, and the top under baked, giving a silky, mousse-like consistency on top. Together, it is simply perfection.

Looking at the layers now, I could have baked both a little bit longer to make them more distinct, but ultimately it didn’t matter, because this cake is a stone-cold knockout. The juxtaposition of the bottom fudgy layer and dark decadent top layer makes this one of the best cakes I’ve ever eaten. So intensely chocolatey, and just perfect as it is.

Although the bake time is quite long, I would make this again in a heartbeat. I think that like the financiers or the cheesecake I’ve made in previous weeks, it’s a perfect recipe to have when you’ve got people coming round. It’s relatively simple to knock up and it’s a real crowd-pleaser. Once again, I’m forever grateful to myself for starting the Puff the Bakery course way back in June, well-done past-Hannah!