Orange Chocolate Cake

My best chocolate cake by far.

If you know me for awhile ( which can be quite a long while) , I am not a chocolate fan at all. How can a lady does not like chocolate at all. I do like chocolate but not a fan. Even if I got myself some chocolate it always be those "rare" type - dark chocolate or the Japan Brand ( my most favourite) Royce. Is always more cocoa than sweet. I remember whenever I was given chocolate , it was quite hard to tell the person thanks but err. Well I just take it and share it with others.

So to decide to bake a chocolate cake is totally out of the blue. This is not the chocolate cake I have make the first . I have tried out the Recipe by chance when I have extra buttermilk in the fridge, just do not want to waste it so I decided to use it for good . I have some organic dark chocolate , why not just give myself a chocolate treat. There will be some day you really need some good dark chocolate to boost your happiness.

After the few attempt I really love the taste of this cake. So I modify and make some chocolate ganache and bring this yum cake to my office Christmas Party. It always great to have chocolate cake in festive season , what more is for Christmas.

The modify recipe is as below :

Ingredient :
114g cake flour (plain flour is fine too)
46g of cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
170g unsalted butter, softened
180g granulated sugar
2 large eggs ( I used 3 eggs, the egg I bought was pathetiquely small)
90ml Milk + 90ml fresh orange juice.( Original recipe is 180ml buttermilk )
2 tbsp Bailey (optional)
1 tsp vanilla extract
113g finely chopped bittersweet chocolate ( I used organic dark chocolate it taste creamy)
1tbsp of Orange Zest

Method :
1. Preheat oven to 170 degree.Grease a 8" round pan and dust with flour .
2. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt. Mix to combine and set aside.
3. Beat the butter with an electric mixer, with medium speed for 2 minutes, until very creamy. Gradually beat in the sugar. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat for 3 min, until the mixture is well blended and light. At medium speed, beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
4. In a small bowl, stir together the orange milk , Bailey ,orange zest and vanilla extract. 
5. At low speed, add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in three additions, alternating it with the milk cream mixture in two additions, and mixing just until blended. Remove the bowl from the mixer stand and stir in the finely chopped chocolate.  Scraped the batter into the prepared cake moulds and smooth the tops.
6. Bake the cakes for 40 to 45 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center of a cake comes out clean. Cool the cakes in the pan set on a wire rack for 10 minutes. 
7. When the cake has cool down cut it into 2 slices.


Chocolate Ganache Filling  (Adapt from Donna Hay )
I have it modify to suit the texture I want it


Ingredients:

225g Dark Chocolate
1 cup of pouring cream
3 egg yolks
1/3 cup caster sugar
1 tbsp of Gelatin
3 tbsp of Water 

Method : 

1. Pour water into a bowl and sprinkle gelatin on it and let it bloom. Put the gelatin bowl on a bowl of hot water to have it melt .
2. Place the chocolate and cream in a saucepan over low heat and stir until melted and smooth.
3. Place the egg yolks and sugar in a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and beat until thick and creamy.
4. Fold the chocolate mixture through the egg mixture beat for a minute and add in gelatin. Beat until well combine ( about another min) . Let the mixture cold down to room temperature.

Assemble :

1. Put one slice of the chocolate cake at the bottom of ring mould.
2. Pour in half the chocolate ganache .
3. Place another slice of the chocolate cake on top of the chocolate ganache.
4. Pour in the reminding chocolate ganache. Smooth the top make sure the side of the cake is well coated. 
5. Refridgerate the cake over night and serve while is chill. 

 

The cake was soft and moist , it was simply delicious.My boss love it and my colleagues enjoy it. 

I change my own thought of a chocolate cake. I will of course bake this again . In fact the 1st time when I bake this was without the chocolate ganache, it was so nice with a cuppa .

 

I manage to keep some for my love and we have a lovely sharing on a Saturday morning. Is such a bliss. He said this is the best chocolate cake he ever has. With a hint of orange taste in the cake it just bring a citrus taste to this moist chocolate cake. Give it a try on this festive season .

Blessed Christmas and new year :))
   

Purple Sweet Potatoes Chiffon Cake

I love potatoes. Never know that I can combine the potatoes in chiffon cake.

Is not easy to find purple sweet potatoes back home.Surprisingly is quite easy to get purple sweet potatoes in Australia. The purple sweet potatoes always is cook as a dessert in soup for Asia family, we will boil it in syrup water with some ginger it. It is good during cold night and is good for digestion as well.

Looking through some of the purple sweet potatoes chiffon cake , I find this appealing and would like to give it a try ->Evan's Kitchen. So here is the recipes I used for this cake:

Ingredients (used 22 cm cake  mould) :

130g purple sweet potato
4 tbsps milk
4 egg yolks
25g brown sugar ( I used caster sugar 40g)
65ml canola oil
4 tbsps water ( I used milk )
110g cake flour, sifted
5 cold egg whites
65g caster sugar
80-100g raw purple sweet potato cubes, lightly coated with cake flour to prevent from sinking to the bottom of the cake


Method :
1. Peel and chop purple sweet potatoes, then steam until cooked. lightly mash with fork, add milk and puree with hand blender until emulsified.
2.Put egg yolks, brown sugar, oil & water in a metal bowl whisk until well blended. add in sweet potato puree and mix well. fold in flour until well combined.
3. Pour egg whites and caster sugar in a bowl beat with hand mixer until stiff peaks, then fold the whites into the yolk mixture in 3 additions. fold in the purple sweet potato cubes.
4. Pour mixture into ungreased chiffon/angel cake tube pan and knock the pan against the counter top to remove some air bubbles.
5. Bake in a preheated oven of 180C for 40 mins or until a wooden skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. remove tin from oven and immediately invert it until the cake has cooled completely.

Again I love the light texture of this cake. I suppose I knock the pan against the counter top too hard the sweet potatoes seem to be quite at the bottom of my cake. I share some with my gal friends. They love it , they are quite surprise - Oh Purple Sweet Potatoes Chiffon Cake? Well if the taste is yum I guess nobody mind a little bit of surprise .