Last weekend my sisters and I made a birthday cake for our mum. It turned out really well so I thought I’d post the recipe for you. The recipe is from a book I had for my birthday back in November called the Chococo Chocolate Cookbook by Claire Burnet. The cake we chose was the Devilishly Delicious Chocolate Cake – with a name like that who wouldn’t want to make it!?

Cake Ingredients
225ml full fat milk
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
200g plain flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
75g cocoa powder
100g unsalted butter
225g golden caster sugar
3 eggs

Frosting Ingredients
200g dark chocolate
250g mascarpone
1-2 tbsp sifted icing sugar

 Cake Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C and grease two 20cm sandwich tins.
2. Pour the milk into a jug with the lemon juice and leave to sour while you prepare the rest of the cake.
3. Sift flour, bicarb of soda and cocoa powder into a bowl.
4. In another bowl cream the butter and sugar together until soft and fluffy.  Gradually add the eggs and beat.
5. Fold the soured milk and flour alternatively into the egg mixture.
6. Divide the mixture evenly between the two tins and bake for 25 minutes.

Frosting Method

1. Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water.
2. Leave to cool for 5 minutes before adding the mascarpone and icing sugar.  Beat until light and fluffy.
3. Then use to sandwich the cakes together and ice the top and sides.  (Make sure the cake is cool before you ice it!)
4. We decided to add strawberries and mini marshmallows to decorate.