Chocolate Fudge Cake with Chocolate Whipped Cream Frosting

The first ever fudge cake that i had was my mum's and i absolutely fell for it! So so yummy that whenever she makes it, it wouldn't last longer than a couple of hours after being cut :D I've never made choc fudge cake myself because i know i'v got mum to do that. I used to think no one could ever beat my mum's fudge cake... Until i came across Sara Phillips's Chocolate fudge cake and had this strong urge to try it out! My mum's recipe had all the ingredients but strong espresso. Guess that was the secret ingredient behind this cake being uniquely fudgy even without the fudge icing.


So, i had my 19th birthday coming up, and i thought this fudge cake would be perfect for the celebration! Since the cake was richly fudgy with an intense chocolate flavor, i decided to go with a light frosting. First thing that popped onto my mind was the fluffy mousse like chocolate whipped cream frosting- Perfect! Then i glammed it up with chocolate glaze and a few chocolate decorations. Overall, it was incredibly indulgent and yes, it didn't last for long! ;)

For this cake you will need:

• the recipe for Chocolate Whipped Cream Frosting
• how to make Chocolate Plates

Fudge Cake
Ingredients

• 260g American flour
• 45g cocoa powder
• 3g salt (1/2 tsp)
• 57g dark chocolate
• 65g unsalted butter (room temperature)
• 200g sugar
• 115g milk
• 53g egg (1 egg)
• 67g egg whites 
• 1 cup strong coffee (2tsp instant coffee powder dissolved in 1 cup hot water)
• 5g baking soda

Method

• Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
• Line an 8" round cake pan. Click here to find out how.

• Sift flour, cocoa powder and salt in a large bowl. Mix and set aside.

• Melt the chocolate either in a microwave or over a double boiler. If using the microwave, melt for about 60seconds while stopping to stir after every 20seconds. This is to prevent the choc from burning.

• Using an electric hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar for about 2 minutes till white and fluffy. Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl using a rubber spatula from time to time and mix again.

• Beat in the melted chocolate. Scrape the sides.

• Add the milk, egg and egg whites in this order and mix after each addition till smooth.

• Fold in the flour mixture with a rubber spatula till you get a smooth thick batter.

• Mix the baking soda in the hot coffee while holding it over the batter bowl (as it might bubble up and spill).

• Add the coffee mixture to the batter, and mix well till you get a watery/thin batter.

• Pour the batter into the lined cake pan till about 1/2 - 3/4 full. Or you can divide the batter equally into 2 and pour each in a separate pan and bake 2 cakes at the same time so that you won't need to sandwich the cake in half in order to frost it. (I poured a little too much - make sure the pan is not more than 3/4 full)

• Bake in your preheated oven for about 40-45 minutes (if baking 2 cakes, for about 20-30 minutes) or until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

• Once it's baked, cool the pan on a wire tray for about half an hour. Then invert the cake onto the wire tray, remove the baking paper and let the cake cool completely. If your cake has a dome like mine (mine's a bit too much - because of the over filling) don't worry since we are going to level it.

Chocolate Glaze

Ingredients

• 300g dark chocolate
• 127g unsalted butter
• 30g water
• pinch of salt
• 1tsp vanilla essence

Method

• Combine all the ingredients except for the vanilla on low fire and keep stirring till the chocolate is almost melted.

• Remove from heat and stir till the chocolate is fully melted.

• Let cool for about half an hour and stir in the vanilla. 

• Strain the mixture into a separate container. Use immediately.

Assembling the Cake

• Level the chocolate fudge cake if there is a dome using a serrated/bread knife, as shown below.

• Cut the cake in half (if you've made 2 cakes then you don't have to follow this step)

• Sandwich the cake with whipped cream frosting and cover the entire cake with the frosting too. In the video posted below i show you how to do it. Let the cake cool in the refrigerator. Then pour the glaze over the cake. Cool the cake again.

• Now it's time to decorate the cake and make it look professional. Check the video below to see how that is done.