Honey chocolate cake

First of all, how incredibly pretty is my cake stand???? Searched high and low for something like this and finally found it for a 7 quid steal. I cant stop gushing about it. Ok, on to the recipe now...I have this ongoing relationship with honey and honey based recipes desserts/cakes...at least for now. One fine day I could wake up and just flip it around and would never want to see or even be called honey, for that matter!!! I was so obsessed with it at one point that I used to search for honey based desserts and cakes, make it, bin it, struggle with it, and on the very rare occasions savour it. Yes, most of it were disastrous, but that's how a food blogger rolls right? No don't answer that, I'd just be upset if that's not how you guys roll.

Anyhoo, two of my favourite recipes to this day when it comes to cakes (and honey) is the Jewish honey cake and this honey chocolate cake by none other than the Domestic Goddess Nigella. Say whatever you want, but I love Nigella and her super duper, throw-in-whatever-you-can recipes. I have tried loads of her recipes and its always a hit, except for the one time I tried a banana butterscotch muffin and that wasn't a fav, but that could be because I bought wrong butterscotch and the bananas weren't ripe enough. 

 

I have made this honey chocolate cake quite a few times and its never failed me. I cant believe it took me this long to post it on my blog, its simply because I've not had any left over to take pics. I realised that honey and chocolate is a match made in heaven and it pairs so beautifully. There is a faint taste of honey when you bite into a piece, and the chocolate just takes it to a whole different level. Sorry about being dramatic about this..but being pleasantly surprised by how chocolate paired with something can make it likable..is worth mentioning, especially to someone who doesn't think chocolate makes the world go round. Yeah, I'm talking about myself!

Its a dense, moist cake, rather than a light airy one which makes it perfect as a dessert/ party cake if you do all the glaze and stuff. But it work just as fine if you omit the fancy stuff and just bake the cake on its own for a tea time accompaniment. I've tried it both ways and personally, I would chuck the glaze and just serve the cake with a dollop of ice cream and a generous splash of Kahlua. ITS DIVINE! trust me. 

I am only giving you the recipe for the cake and not the sticky honey glaze. Also, feel free to halve the cake.

Recipe adapted from here

Dark chocolate- 100 gms, broken into pieces (more than 70% cocoa preferred)

Dark Brown sugar- 275 gms

Unsalted butter- 225 gms, softened

Honey- 125ml (runny)

Eggs- 2, medium

vanilla extract- 1/2 tsp (optional)

Plain flour- 200 gms

Baking soda- 1 tsp

Cocoa powder- 1 tbsp

Boiling water- 250ml

Kahlua (coffee liqueur)- 3 to 4 tbsp (optional)

 

Place the chocolate chunks in a large bowl and melt over a pot of simmering water till smooth and keep aside to cool slightly. You can also do this in the microwave by heating it in bursts till all the chocolate melts. 

Sift/ mix together the flour, baking soda and cocoa powder and keep aside.

Into a large mixing bowl add the sugar and butter and beat together till light and fluffy, either using a hand beater or the paddle attachment of a free standing mixer. You can also just use a strong whisk to do this.

Add the eggs, one after the other beating well after each addition, followed by vanilla extract (if using).

Fold in the melted chocolate with a spatula, making sure its all well mixed.

Tip in the flour mix and mix well, making sure there are no lumps.

Finally add the boiling water and beat well to get a slightly runny batter, but smooth and without any traces of flour.

Pour into a 9inch baking pan which has been buttered and lined with baking paper, and bake in an oven pre heated at 180C for about 1.30 hours.

Check the cake after about 45 minutes and if you think its browning on top, cover loosely with foil paper and continue baking. Keep checking every 15 minutes or so to see if its done.

Once a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean, you can take it out of the oven and cool on a rack.

While still a tad hot, poke small holes in the cake using a skewer and pour over the Kahlua so it soaks up well. Alternatively, you can just do as I'd mentioned above.

 

Notes: Original recipe calls for light muscavado sugar, but brown sugar works perfectly fine.
Use good quality honey.

Nigella's procedure is slightly different from the one I have mentioned, both methods work fine, I just prefer to do it this way because its more organised (that's right, I said organised).

She also says you can blitz together everything except the boiling water which you can pour down the funnel with the motor running. Haven't really tried doing that, but if she says it works, IT WORKS!

Replace Kahlua with coffee for an almost similar taste.

The cake stays for about 3 days at room temperature, provided you can manage to keep it that long.