Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

• 200g good quality dark chocolate
• 200g butter, softened
• 1 cup (220g) caster sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 ½ cups (225g) self-raising flour
• ¼ cup (25g) cocoa powder
• 1¼ cups (310ml) buttermilk
• Cream, to serve

Chocolate Ganache

• 200g good quality dark chocolate, chopped
• 2/3 cup (160ml) pure cream

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180°C no fan (160°C fan forced). Grease and line base and sides of a 22cm cake pan with baking paper.
2. Melt chocolate in a heatproof bowl over hot water. Set aside.
3. Assemble mixer using scraper beater and the large mixer bowl. Add butter, sugar and vanilla to bowl. Slowly turn mixer to CREAM/BEAT setting; beat for 1-2 minutes or until pale and creamy. Add eggs one and at time, beat until combined.  Add melted chocolate and mix until combined.
4. Reduce speed to KNEAD/FOLD setting; add half of the sifted dry ingredients and buttermilk and then repeat with remaining flour and milk mixtures. Spoon mixture into prepared pan and bake for about 1 hour and 10 minutes or until cooked when tested with a wooden skewer.
5. Allow cake to cool in pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely upside down.
6. To make ganache, Place chocolate into a heat proof bowl. Heat cream in a saucepan until it almost comes to the boil. Pour cream over chocolate; sit for 1-2 minutes then stir to combine. Sit at room temperature until cooled slightly then drizzle over cooled cake. Serve with cream.