Chocolate and – Rum – soaked Cake!

print
P1590903

My new obsession with old Cookery books continues, and here’s yet another interesting recipe from an old Charity Cookbook.  I thought this one was worth giving a go..it was the words ‘Chocolate’ and ‘Rum’ in one sentence that attracted my attention.. 😉

This cake can be eaten plain – although I do like a dollop of fresh whipped cream and a handful of raspberries, I cannot deny it! Or it can be dolled up for a party with a topping of creamy Mascarpone and Icing sugar whipped together, or my own Chocolate Fudge Icing https://eatingforireland.com/recipe/my-easy-chocolate-fudge-icing-recipe/ and virtually any decorations you like.

It uses a good quality Cocoa as the only flavouring, which I always like in a Chocolate cake. If you were making it for a Children’s Party, you could replace the cocoa with Drinking Chocolate, such a Cadbury’s, to make it less rich, and sweeter, for young palates..

EQUIPMENT:

  • An 8inch/20cms round cake tin, greased and lined (or a ready-made liner, preferably a reusable one)
  • A large mixing bowl
  • A medium-sized bowl
  • A large measuring jug
  • A hand held Electric beater
  • A spatula
  • A small saucepan

INGREDIENTS: For the Cake:

  • 150g Plain flour
  • 25g good quality Cocoa
  • 2 level teaspoons of Baking Powder
  • A pinch of salt
  • 50g soft brown Sugar
  • 3 medium or 2 large eggs, separated
  • 90mls Vegetable Oil
  • 90mls cold Milk
  • A good splash of Vanilla extract

For the Rum syrup:

  • 100g granulated sugar
  • 100mls cold water
  • 2 tablespoons of Rum

 

METHOD:

  • Line the cake tin, and place on a baking sheet.
  • Heat the oven to 160ºFan or the equivalent
  • Separate the eggs, put the yolks into the measuring jug, and the whites into the Medium sized bowl
  • Measure the flour, Baking Powder, salt, and Cocoa into the large bowl.

P1590894

  • Add the sugar, and mix well together.
  • Using the electric whisk, beat the egg whites until firm and frothy.

P1590895

  • Add the Oil and the milk to the egg yolks, the use the same whisk to beat them together until well combined.
  • Add the Egg/Milk/Oil mixture to the dry ingredients, and mix it in until you get a smooth, well combined dough. It will be quite stiff at this stage.
  • Add one tablespoon of egg white to the dough and fold in quickly, this will loosen the mix a little.
  • Add the rest of the egg whites all in one go, and fold in gently but thoroughly, trying not to knock out all of the air in the mixture.

P1590896

  • Pour the whole lot onto the prepared tin, and bake for 30 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean, and the sponge bounces back when you press it with a finger tip.
  • Remove from the tin, leaving the baking parchment on, and cool on a raised-up rack, until completely cold.

P1590899

Make the Syrup:

  • Weigh the sugar and water into a small saucepan
  • Bring to the boil, and boil hard until all the sugar is dissolved and the liquid has reduced to half its volume. Allow to cool a little.
  • Add the Rum
  • Put the cake, still wrapped its baking parchment back into the cake tin. Put the tin on a tray to catch any drips.
  • Stab the cake all over with a fine skewer; this helps the syrup drain evenly into the cake.
  • Pour the hot syrup over the cake, including the edges, and allow to cool again, preferably overnight.
  • Remove the baking parchment and transfer the cake to a suitable plate.
  • Whip a carton of double cream until it reaches soft peaks, then spread it over the top of the cake.
  • Decorate with Chocolate curls, Fresh raspberries, toasted sliced Almonds or toasted crushed Hazelnuts. As a Nut-Free house, we always go with the Chocolate Curls, with added raspberries for special occasions!
  • If you’ve decorated it, keep it chilled until you serve it. If it’s just for us, I tend to leave it undecorated and offer whipped cream and raspberries separately.

P1590905

NOTES:

  • There are not too many Notes, as this is a fairly simple recipe. The most difficult part for us was having to wait until everything was fully cooled – this cake smells amazing!
  • This cake has an excellent texture, so it works really well as a stand-alone Chocolate cake. The cocoa makes it seriously chocolaty!

P1590903

Chocolate cake (2)

About

I started writing down recipes in an old copybook when I was about 16. With 6 children at home, my Mother was always glad of a hand in the kitchen, and really allowed us to experiment - as long as we washed up afterwards, and left the kitchen immaculate! Having a tidy kitchen has followed me through my life, as has the habit of writing down my favourite recipes; except that these days I write them for my website, and add photographs when I can. The website really started when it occurred to me that my daughter might like to have these recipes when I've forgotten them. In my early days of cooking for family and friends, I used to phone my Mum all the time to ask her for the recipe for some of our favourite family dinners. She rarely had a recipe to hand - I think, like me, she made a lot of it up as she went along.. So welcome to Eating for Ireland - these are the recipes that my friends and family having been eating these past 40 years.. yes, I truly am ancient! They are tried and tested, and have worked for me for all that time - I have updated them as new ingredients became available - I really hope you'll find something that you can make into a family favourite of your own. You don't have to tell anyone where you found these great new dishes that you're serving up - it can be our little secret, but I'd really love it if you could give me a sneaky 'follow' on Facebook and Instagram.. So off you go - have a good rummage around, you're bound to find something new! My sincere thanks to all of you who have found a recipe that you liked and dropped me a line to tell me - I really do love to hear from you! Happy Cooking! Becks xx

Posted in