What makes this cake so good?

Let’s talk about the texture of this cake. We’re talking about a fudgy, moist, and rich chocolate sponge that really stands out. But what makes this cake so unique compared to other recipes? Well, we’ve used oil and sour cream (yes, sour cream!) to achieve the perfect texture. I know it sounds a bit unusual, right? You might be thinking that sour cream is better suited for chilli rather than cake, but after trying this bake, you might just change your mind!

When getting a moist cake, you want to try including as many fatty dairy products as possible. This is typically butter, cream, etc., but you create this perfectly moist and fudgy texture by using sour cream, one of the fattiest dairy products! We also use oil rather than butter as this is a liquid and stays as such once baked, further enhancing this quality. Yum!

Can you taste the coffee?

I know it might sound like a silly question since the cake is called a Chocolate Coffee Cake, but have you ever wondered where the coffee flavour comes from? Well, the cake batter contains a cup of coffee, but you might be surprised to learn that the coffee flavour isn’t very noticeable in the baked cake. In fact, the coffee is used to enhance the chocolate flavour rather than overpower it with coffee taste. It’s like adding mustard to a cheese sauce to make it extra cheesy!

The secret behind the amazing coffee flavour in this cake is the buttercream! We crafted the perfect icing by infusing our top-selling medium-dark coffee into the butter and sugar mixture. Combined with a thorough whisking, and there you have it, a creamy and light coffee icing! Get in.

Is your mouth watering yet? Let’s bake!

Ingredients

The Chocolate Cake

• 240ml of brewed coffee (cooled to room temperature)
• 240g plain flour
• 1 tbsp cornflour
• 200g granulated sugar
• 100g dark brown soft sugar
• 50g cocoa
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• ½ salt
• 110ml vegetable oil
• 180g sour cream
• 2 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

The Coffee Buttercream

• 265g unsalted butter
• 435g icing sugar
• 2-4 tbsp espresso
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
• Coffee Beans (optional for decoration)

Method: The Chocolate Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/gas mark 4.
2. Line two 20cm/8-inch cake tins with greaseproof paper.
3. Make your coffee so it can cool while you do the following steps. We used a double espresso topped with water.
4. Sift all the dry ingredients in a large bowl and whisk until combined. (Plain flour, cornflour, granulated sugar, dark brown soft sugar, cocoa, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt.)
5. In another bowl, combine the wet ingredients and whisk until just combined. (Coffee, vegetable oil, sour cream, eggs and vanilla extract.)
6. Slowly pour the wet ingredients into the dry, and whisk until smooth.
7. Pour your mixture into a large jug. This will make it easier to pour into the tins, and you can follow the measurements to ensure each cake has an equal amount of the batter.
8. Pour the cake mixture into the tins and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
9. Let the cakes cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes before removing from the tins and set aside to cool completely.

Method: The Coffee Buttercream

1. Mix the butter with an electric whisk until pale and smooth (roughly 10 minutes).
2. Gradually add the icing sugar, one-third at a time, and whisk until fully incorporated.
3. To start, add 2 tbsp of the coffee and whisk until fully incorporated.
4. Taste test the icing and keep adding coffee until you are happy with the flavour. We added a further 3 tbsp. At this stage, you can also add 1 tsp of vanilla extract.

Constructing the cake

1. By this stage, your cakes should be cooled. If rounded at the top, use a knife to level until flat.
2. Place one half on a plate with the (top-down) so the base faces up.
3. Spoon some of the coffee buttercream and spread it around with the back of a metal spoon. Try and make it as flat as possible!
4. Get the second half of the cake and place it on top (base down). Give it a nice wiggle so it’s firmly on there.
5. Spoon more buttercream on top and spread around with a metal spoon.
6. Optional: Decorate with some coffee beans!
7. Enjoy!