By Helen Tzouganatos, Hungry and Fussy
[post_ads]Here is my pimped up version of the classic Victorian Sponge Cake. This chocolate sponge is light and fluffy unlike most gluten free chocolate cakes which tend to fall into the ‘rich and dense’ category. The great thing about this soft and bouncy gluten free chocolate sponge cake recipe is that it can be used as your basic chocolate sponge recipe for a myriad of chocolate cakes like Black Forest, Chocolate Berry, Chocolate Custard or my Dulce De Luche version listed below.
If you don’t have time to make the dulce de luche feel free to use a store bought version or caramel fill instead. You can even add a layer of peanuts or popcorn crunch and texture. I kept my version nut free so that it’s suitable for kids parties.
[post_ads]Here is my pimped up version of the classic Victorian Sponge Cake. This chocolate sponge is light and fluffy unlike most gluten free chocolate cakes which tend to fall into the ‘rich and dense’ category. The great thing about this soft and bouncy gluten free chocolate sponge cake recipe is that it can be used as your basic chocolate sponge recipe for a myriad of chocolate cakes like Black Forest, Chocolate Berry, Chocolate Custard or my Dulce De Luche version listed below.
If you don’t have time to make the dulce de luche feel free to use a store bought version or caramel fill instead. You can even add a layer of peanuts or popcorn crunch and texture. I kept my version nut free so that it’s suitable for kids parties.
Ensure you follow my three essential sponge cake tips listed in my Victorian Sponge Cake recipe. Retaining as much air as possible at each stage of the process is critical that is why I have suggested a manual folding method in the last step of my Thermomix instructions because this will make all the difference to the final texture of the cake.
A chocolate ganache is a smooth, glossy blend of chocolate and cream. Ganache is delicious spread over chocolate cakes or as a biscuit filling. I follow a two step approach to avoid ganache splitting and turning lumpy. First, let the finely chopped chocolate sit and melt into the cream for 5 minutes. Second, stir until just combined. Do not over stir.
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Serves: 10 serves
Ingredients
- 6 eggs
- ¾ cup caster sugar
- 1 tbs vanilla extract
- ¾ cup potato starch
- ¼ cup cornflour
- ¼ cup dutch cocoa
- 100g 70% cocoa dark cooking chocolate, chopped
- 60g unsalted butter, chopped
- Dulce De Leche
- Whipped Cream
Chocolate Ganache
- 100mL pouring cream
- 150g 70% cocoa dark cooking chocolate, chopped
- 1 tbs glucose syrup
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Instructions
Conventional Method
- Preheat oven to 180c and grease 2 x 20cm square or round cake tins. Line the bases with baking paper.
- Beat eggs, sugar and vanilla extract in electric mixer for 8 minutes until thick and pale.
- Whilst the egg mixture is beating triple sift potato starch, cocoa and cornflour together in a separate bowl.
- Melt butter and chocolate together in the microwave. Stir to combine.
- Sift the flour over the egg mixture one third at a time and gently fold through the batter using a thin rubber spatula.
- Add chocolate mixture and gently fold through the batter.
- Pour half the mixture into each baking tin and bake for 15-20 min or until cakes are springy to touch. Transfer to wire racks to cool.
- Make chocolate ganache by heating cream in a saucepan until it simmers. Remove from heat, add chocolate and glucose syrup and sit for 5 min. Stir until just combined to avoid splitting.
- Spread a layer of dulce de leche on the base of one cake. Top with whipped cream and sandwich cakes together. Top with coating of chocolate ganache.
Thermomix Method
- Preheat oven to 180c and grease 2 x 20cm square or round cake tins. Line the bases with baking paper.
- Combine potato starch, cocoa and cornflour in Thermomix bowl and mix 10 sec/speed 5. Set aside and clean and dry Thermomix bowl.
- Insert butterfly into mixing bowl and beat eggs, sugar and vanilla extract 5 min/speed 5 with MC removed. Transfer batter to a bowl.
- Clean Thermomix bowl and melt chocolate and butter together 50C/speed 3/5 min.
- Very gently manually fold the flour through the egg mixture one third at a time with a thin rubber spatula (as per conventional method) to retain as much air as possible. I find the manual method works best here to retain maximum air and a fluffy batter.
- Add chocolate mixture and gently fold through the batter.
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- Pour half the mixture into each baking tin and bake for 15-20 min or until cakes are springy to touch. Transfer to wire racks to cool.
- To make chocolate ganache heat cream in Thermomix 90C/2 min/speed 3. Add chocolate and glucose syrup and sit for 5 min. Mix to combine speed 3/5 sec.
- Spread a layer of dulce de leche on the base of one cake. Top with whipped cream and sandwich cakes together. Top with coating of chocolate ganache.
