Chocolate orange cake

By Amanda James, Olive Magazine

Treat yourself to this indulgent chocolate cake laced with orange curd and zest, slathered with moreish chocolate orange buttercream.

Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes + cooling
Yield: serves 8-10

Ingredients

• self-raising flour 300g
• cocoa powder 100g
• baking powder 1 tsp
• salted butter 300g
• soft light brown sugar 150g
• light muscovado sugar 150g
• eggs 4 large
• vanilla extract 1 tsp
• whole milk 150ml
• oranges 3 zested, 2 juiced
• dark chocolate 100g, melted and cooled
• orange curd 100g
• orange zest to serve
• chocolate curls to serve

BUTTERCREAM

• icing sugar 450g, sifted
• unsalted butter 150g, cubed and softened
• mascarpone 200g
• dark chocolate 50g, melted and cooled a little
• orange 1, juiced

Method

Step 1

Heat the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Line 2 x 20cm deep springform cake tins with baking paper.

Step 2

Stir the flour, cocoa and baking powder in a bowl. In a separate bowl, beat together the butter and sugars with electric beaters until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one by one followed by the vanilla extract and whole milk. Add 2 spoonfuls of the flour mix if it starts to curdle.

Step 3

Fold the flour mixture into the batter until just combined. Stir in the orange juice and zest and the cooled melted chocolate. Divide the mixture between the tins and bake for 30-40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middles comes out clean. Cool in the tins for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Step 4

To make the buttercream, sift the icing sugar into a bowl, add the butter and beat with electric beaters for 5 minutes. Add the mascarpone and beat for 1 minute until smooth and spreadable. Stir through the melted chocolate and orange juice.

Step 5

Evenly spread 1/2 the buttercream and orange curd on one sponge. Sandwich the cakes together, then spread the rest of the buttercream and curd and chill for 10 minutes. Decorate with chocolate shavings and extra orange zest.