Dark chocolate sponge

 Ingredients:

100 g plain chocolate, chopped
250 ml milk
275 g brown sugar
2 medium eggs, beaten
100 g salted butter, softened
175 g plain flour
1 t baking powder
2 T cocoa powder

 Ganache icing:

1/3 c (80 ml) cream
200 g dark chocolate, chopped coarsely

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 160 degrees C. 
2. Grease two 17 cm sandwich tins and line the bases with baking paper. 
3. Melt the chocolate in the saucepan with half the milk and half the brown sugar. Stir the mixture constantly to prevent the chocolate sticking to the bottom of the saucepan. Remove the pan from the heat and let cool. 
4. Using a wooden spoon or electric mixer, cream the butter with the remaining brown sugar. 
5. Whisk in the beaten eggs, a little at a time, until light and fluffy. If necessary, add 1 - 2 T of flour to the mixture when beating in the eggs to prevent curdling. 
6. Sift the flour, baking powder and cocoa powder together. 
7. Using a large metal spoon, gently fold the flour mixture into the creamed mixture in three batches. While the chocolate mixture is still warm, fold it into the cake mixture. 
8. Stir in the remaining milk to form a runny consistency, then divide the mixture between the two prepared sandwich tins. 
9. Bake on the middle rack of a preheated oven 160 degrees C (375 degrees F, gas mark 3) for about 20 - 25 minutes, until the sponge springs back when lightly pressed or when a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. 
10. Remove the cake from the oven and let cool in the tins. 

 To make ganache: 

1. Stir cream and chocolate in small saucepan over low heat until smooth. 
2. Cool 15 minutes before icing. 

Sandwich cakes together with ganache, then cover with more ganache.

 Notes:

•  I made one and a half times the recipe and split between three 22 cm sandwich tins. 
•  Try using 200 g white chocolate with 4 T cream to make ganache, then add food colouring if you wish to change colour of the icing.

Excellent Carrot Cake

Moist yet light and super easy to make. Keeps well (if you can resist).
Serves 10 - 12

Ingredients:
1 cup oil
2 cups raw or white sugar
4 small eggs
1 cup wholemeal flour
1 cup plain flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon mixed spice
1 teaspoon ginger
3 cups grated carrot (2-3 medium size carrots)
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 tablespoon orange juice

Method:
Preheat oven to 160°C.
Grease a 23-25 cm round cake tin.
Put oil, sugar and eggs in food processor. Blitz to combine.
Add to the food processor wholemeal and plain flour, salt, cinnamon, mixed spice, ginger and carrot. Blitz just to combine.
Dissolve baking soda in orange juice then fold in to the mixture.
Pour mixture into cake tin and bake for 55 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean.
Leave cake to cool before icing.

Cream cheese icing:
40 g soft butter
125 g cream cheese (not spreadable)
juice and finely grated rind of 1/2 lemon
2 cups icing sugar

Mix icing ingredients in food processor until smooth.

Note: original recipe suggested double the icing ingredients (or double the calories)!

Feeling creative? Combine a mixture of chopped nuts, seeds and dried fruit to sprinkle over the icing e.g. dried apricots, pumpkin seeds, pecans

Mum's Chocolate Cake

INGREDIENTS:

20 cm square tin
300 g butter
6 T cocoa
9 t hot water
1 ½ c sugar
1 1/8 c flour
1 ½ t baking powder
3 eggs

METHOD:

Melt butter, cocoa and hot water in a thick based saucepan.
Add sugar and stir well.
Add flour and baking powder and blend together lightly.
Stir in egg yolks and then quickly stir in stiffly beaten egg whites.
Pour into a greased tin and bake at 180ºC for 30 – 40 minutes.

ICING:

90 g cream cheese
90 g butter
2 c icing sugar
2 T cocoa
Vanilla essence

Beat cream cheese and butter to a cream.
Add the rest of the ingredients and beat until smooth.

Carrot Cake

Ingredients:
1/4 cup oil (eg peanut or sunflower)
1 cup apple sauce
1/4 cup low-fat milk
2 egg whites and 1 whole egg
1/2 cup flour
3-4 cup sugar
2 cups wholemeal flour
2 tsps baking powder, baking soda and vanilla essence
2 tsps cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp ground cloves
2 cups grated carrots
1/2 cups chopped walnuts and raisins or chopped prunes
1 234g can pineapple crushed with juice

Method:

1. In a large bowl, beat together the oil, apple sauce, milk, egg whites and egg until well mixed.

2. In another bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmet and cloves. Make a well in the centre. Carefully pour the apple sauce mixture into the well in the dry ingredients and mix them together lightly with a holed spoon.

3. Add the carrots, walnuts, raisins, pineapple and vanilla. Pour mixture into a 23cm greased cake tin.

4. Bake for 60-70 minutes at 180 deg C. The cake is cooked when a skewer inserted comes out clean and the cake has come away form the side of the tin. This cake is very moist.

5. Allow the cake to cool 10 minutes before turning out and leaving the cake to cool on a cake
rack.

Topping:

1. In a food processor, put 1/2 cup low fat cottage cheese, 3 tblspns low fat yoghurt, 1 tsp vanilla, 1 tblspn lemon juice, 1/4 cup cream cheese, and 3 tblspns icing sugar. Process until blended.

2. When the cake is cold, spread the topping over the cake and decorate with walnuts or grated lemon rind.