The Ultimate Chocolate Cake

Annabel Langbein’s most popular recipe!

This is probably the most popular recipe I have ever written. My kids used to win prizes with this in school competitions – it’s ridiculously simple to make, and the recipe produces a giant perfectly risen cake with a lovely, tender chocolatey crumb. Serves 16 / GF if gluten-free flour is used · V

3 cups self-raising flour or gluten-free self-raising flour

2 cups caster sugar

¾ cup Dutch cocoa, sifted 2 tsp baking soda,

sifted

3 large (size 7) eggs 200 g butter, at

room temperature

1 cup natural yoghurt

or milk

1 cup boiling hot co ee 1½ tsp vanilla extract fresh raspberries, to garnish

(optional)

Chocolate Ganache

500 ml cream

500 g good-quality dark chocolate (at least 50% cocoa solids), coarsely chopped

Preheat oven to 160°C fanbake. Grease the sides of a 30cm diameter springform cake tin (or 2 x 20cm tins) and line the base(s) with baking paper.

Place all ingredients except for raspberries in a large bowl, electric mixer or food processor and mix or whizz until fully incorporated. Pour into prepared tin and smooth top. Bake until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean (1 hour for large cake, 45 minutes for small cakes). Allow to cool in the tin. If not using at once, store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.

While the cake is cooling, make Chocolate Ganache. Heat cream in a medium pot until not quite boiling (you’ll know it’s ready when bubbles start to form around the sides of the pot). Remove from heat and add chocolate. Allow to stand for 2 minutes, then stir until chocolate is fully melted into cream. Whisk until smooth and glossy (you’ll think it won’t come together, but it will). Once cool, but not chilled, whip ganache to a light, flu y consistency with an electric beater. Slather the cooled cake with Chocolate Ganache and top with fresh raspberries (if using).

If not using ganache immediately, store in a jar in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. It will solidify as it cools, so if you want a runnier consistency gently warm in a pot or microwave before use.