My baby, well technically my oldest, is 12 today. It doesn’t seem possible that 12 years ago at a small hospital in Pretoria, South Africa my first baby was born. He had apparently had enough of womb life and wanted out about a month early. He was teeny tiny, 2.76 kg (just 6 pounds) so not too tiny. What a great baby he was, the two of us exploring South Africa and traveling around the world, while his daddy was busy working and traveling the world trying to get a company off the ground. Thankfully things have slowed down for us since those early days.
Many, many things have changed since then.
For his birthday this year I possibly made an inappropriate cake. Adding coffee to chocolate helps to pump up the chocolate flavor. As luck would have it Starbucks had sent me some VIA, a new instant coffee, to try. I thought that it would be a perfect marriage in this cake. After some quick decision making I decided to add the whole packet, 2 teaspoons. It was chocolaty and certainly had some coffee punch! The kids thought that maybe it was a bit too much punch. Next time I might cut the VIA in half to just one teaspoon if feeding kiddos. I think that VIA is stronger than using your usual coffee grounds or instant espresso. I chose the Columbia variety over the Italian Roast by the eeny meeny miny moe method. (who knew there was a wiki for that?)
The texture of this cake is dense and delightfully rich. It is not the kind of cake to eat as a layer cake, I think it would be too much.
dense chocolate cake
Chocolate Cake with get up and GO
makes one 8in (20cm) round cake
- 1/2 cup natural, unrefined sugar
- 2 Tbsp agave syrup
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup neutral oil such as canola or grapeseed
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1-2 tsp Starbucks VIA or other instant powdered espresso
- 3/4 cup flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1 cup milk or soymilk
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease cake pan and dust with cocoa powder.
In a med bowl with a sieve set inside measure the flour, baking powder, cocoa powder and shake through to sift.
In a large bowl mix the sugar, agave syrup, until creamed. Add the egg, oil, and vanilla and continue to mix until light and fluffy. Alternating between the flour mixture and the milk combine slowly and gently into the sugar and egg batter.
Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 30-40 minutes, until a toothpick comes out almost clean. Cool 10 minutes in the pan, then remove to a cooling rack until completely cooled.
I topped it with cream whipped with a little powdered sugar and splash of cognac. I think it would also be fun to top with a 7-minute boiled frosting, I love how cool and spiked that frosting looks. The whipped cream worked well here and played nicely with the full-flavored cake. Sprinkle the whipped cream with some shaved chocolate or good quality chocolate decorating pieces. It would be more than fantastic with a simple dusting of powdered sugar.
Party Time!
{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
Happy birthday to your son!! What a divine & rich yummie looking cake this is!!
I so love it!!
MMMMMMM,….Just pure indulgence!
Thanks Sophie, you are always so sweet!
Hello!
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Do you think if I had some of your rather decadent cake with some coffee, that would just push things over the top?
it might
depends on your caffeine threshold I presume!
This looks so perfectly moist, decadent, and delicious! I look forward to an excuse to bake one, I may have to start celebrating unbirthdays.
It’s cake, who needs an excuse. It is perfect for any day ending in “day”
oh yum. and I love the story – sounds like you’ve had a very interesting life so far!
Oh my, this is the most perfect chocolate cake I’ve ever heard of.. What a moist layer! Congrats on your ‘baby’!!
Oops, I missed this post while in Mexico. HAPPY BIRTHDAY “Karl”. Was it really 12 yrs ago? That just doesn’t seem possible. Well, this will be the next cake a make! I love chocolate and I love coffee! Yummy!
I think you and your coffee addition can handle this cake
Thank you Kristen for the recipe for this wonderful cake!! I used it for valentines day and it was a hit! It was moist and such a great chocolate flavor. ( I don’t usually like cake this much) Mmmmm… I liked your powdered sugar idea too!
Keep up the good work!
~Nichole
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