Chocolate Mud Cake

A regular on our facebook fan page, Debbie Rowland has kindly sent us her recipe for chocolate mud. Debbie says this cake recipe is so fabulous it would be a sin not to share it!

Once you've tried this cake, you'll find yourself using it time and again with different variations. You can even adapt the recipe to make a giant cupcake. Very popular with our facebook fans!

"I do quite often substitute the coffee with peppermint extract for mint choc cake, or orange extract and zest for chocolate orange cake. LUSH!" Debbie enthuses.

Here's how to make it:

Chocolate Mud Cake

Pre heat the oven to 160ºC and prepare a 9" round cake tin or giant cupcake tin.

Ingredients:

• 220g (7oz) Butter or margarine
• 220g (7oz) Dark chocolate
• 6tsps instant coffee
• 160mls (5½fl oz) water
• 125g (4½oz) Self raising flour
• 125g (4½oz) plain flour
• 50g (2oz) cocoa powder
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 480g (1lb 1oz) caster sugar
• 4 eggs
• 35ml (1fl oz) vegetable oil
• 110ml (4fl oz) sour cream

Melt chocolate, butter, coffee and water in a pan on a low heat. Sift the dry ingredients together (flour, cocoa, bicarb) stir in sugar. In a separate bowl whisk eggs, oil and sour cream together. Pour the egg mix and chocolate mix into the dry ingredients and mix well.

Pour into cake tin and cook at 160ºc (1h 40mins for a 9" round) or about an hour for the giant cupcake, sometimes needs 5 minutes longer.

The cake works well with a Ganache or 'Boozy' Glaze.

Chocolate's Hidden Benefits...

Did you know chocolate is purported to be an aphrodisiac and an anti depressant?! Apparently, because chocolate increases our serotonin and endorphin levels, it brings immediate comfort and lifts our mood. Chocolate also contains caffeine, which has a mild amphetamine effect.

While it's never been proven, it is widely suggested that chocolate has aphrodisiac qualities. In 1624, Johan Franciscus Rauch, an Austrian professor, tried to ban chocolate from monasteries and urged monks not to drink chocolate as he said it ‘inflamed passions’.

More Chocolate Recipes

If you're a true chocolate lover, you'll be in heaven when you sample more of our fabulous chocolate-filled recipes, including Chocolate Loaf Cake, Chocolate Truffle Cupcakes and Double Chocolate Brownies.