March 8th, 2020: International Women’s Day.
Today we commemorate all the women that had made possible that our generation and the ones to come, can use our own voices, choose our own paths, be an active part of the society and specially that we continue fighting for human rights and raise awareness about the inequalities that sadly persist in our society. Still a long path to walk, but we believe in a brighter future.
Having said that, we can move on to the cake and very first post of the year: Chocolate cake with pistachios on top. A very easy and simple recipe to follow and the result is amazingly full of flavor. I actually made this for Valentines day, but didn’t have time to upload it. Hope you like it!
Ingredients
For the cake
- 225 g all-purpose flour (or any other type of flour)
- 350 g granulated sugar
- 85 g cocoa powder (without sugar)
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- 1½ tsp baking soda
- 2 eggs
- 250 ml partially skimmed milk
- 125 ml vegetable oil
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 250 ml boiling water
For the chocolate icing
- 200 g/7 oz plain chocolate (70%)
- 200 ml/7 fl oz double cream
For decoration
- Crushed pistachios or nuts of your preference
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 180 C. Grease and line two 20 cm/8 in sandwich/round tins.
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For the cake, place all of the cake ingredients, except the boiling water, into a large mixing bowl. Using a wooden spoon, or electric whisk, beat the mixture until smooth and well combined.
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Add the boiling water to the mixture, a little at a time, until smooth. (The cake mixture will now be very liquid.)
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Divide the cake batter between the tins and bake in the oven for 25–35 min, or until the top is firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
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Remove the cakes from the oven and allow to cool completely, still in their tins, before icing.
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For the chocolate icing, heat the chocolate and cream in a saucepan over a low heat until the chocolate melts. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk the mixture until smooth, glossy and thickened. Set aside to cool for 1–2 h, or until thick enough to spread over the cake.
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To assemble the cake, run a round-bladed knife around the inside of the cake tins to loosen the cakes. Carefully remove the cakes from the tins.
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Spread a little chocolate icing over the top of one of the chocolate cakes, then carefully top with the other cake.
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Transfer the cake to a serving plate and ice the cake all over with the chocolate icing, using a palette knife or a spatula. Place the pistachios (or nuts) on top of the cake and serve! Enjoy!!
Chia con limón 