Dark Chocolate Cake with a caramel glaze

Yum...is the word that first came to mind on reading this recipe....I waited to make this cake as it looked and felt like a special occasion cake and what better occasion than a loved ones birthday ?!!!
I was initially a bit apprehensive as there was an option to use commercial caramel syrup or to make my own with a lot of cream...with great trepidation,I substituted with milk and I was more than happy with the result,especially after seeing the reaction of the people for whom it was intended...the fact that they did NOT want to share the cake with anyone else,was reward enough for having made it....with all the smiles and hugs that came with it of course...what is cooking without all of that !!!
A deliciously moist dark chocolate cake with jaggery (optional) and whole grain flours (optional),I recommend that you use the very best quality dark chocolate that you find and not the compound chocolate...I also used one of my recent finds...Hershey's dark cocoa (optional)...it's perfect for a true chocoholic !!!! I would also suggest that you use the best organic jaggery that you can find,the darker the colour,the deeper the flavour...I happen to love the flavour of dark chocolate and jaggery,the original recipe calls for regular sugar,so I leave the choice to you !

Recipe for Dark chocolate cake with a caramel topping

Ingredients

Dark chocolate-100g

Butter-65 g

Water-125ml

Cocoa-25 g

Flour- 175g (I prefer wholemeal flour)

Sugar-200g (jaggery )

Egg-1

Vanilla essence-1 tsp

Baking powder-1/2 tsp

Baking soda-1/2 tsp

Milk-4 Tbsp 

chocolate curls to decorate

23 cm round cake tin or a 20 cm square cake tin-greased and lined

Method

Pre-heat the oven at 180 degrees C

Melt ,in a saucepan ,on very low heat,the butter,chocolate and water...stir to mix.

Sift the flour,cocoa,baking powder and baking soda into a bowl (this sifting,I believe makes for a lighter cake...though the recipe does not ask for it)

Mix  the sugar into the flour mixture 

 In another bowl,whisk together the egg,vanilla essence and the milk

Add the melted chocolate to the egg mixture and stir in

Add the dry ingredients and gently fold in

Now you will have a fairly thick batter

 Ladle it into the prepared cake tin

Shake it gently to even out the batter

Place it in the oven...and check after 30 mts

It should have come away from the sides and a light crust will form on top...or you can stick a skewer in the centre and test if it comes out clean

Take the cake out of the oven and let cool for 30 mts while you prepare the caramel topping

Caramel glaze 

5 Tbsp water

200 g sugar

50g g butter

4 Tbsp milk

Now for this cake,half a quantity of this recipe will do...there is a lot of caramel glaze left over after drizzling on the cake,it will keep well in the fridge and can be used to pour over ice cream or for a smoothie or you could just make enough for the cake and skip the extra calories ;P

Put the water and sugar in a pan on low heat,do not stir ,let the sugar melt and turn into a light golden syrup,take it off the fire and place it over some cold water,in a vessel to stop the cooking process.

Add the butter and milk and mix in vigorously

Then return to low heat and keep stirring until well combined

Take off the heat and place on a trivet to cool..it will thicken gloriously-20 mts

Pour over the cake and garnish with chocolate curls

This cake also keeps well in the fridge.

It just goes to show that no matter how many cake books one has read or how many recipes one has tried,there is always a special recipe hidden somewhere to delight you and teach you something new...I thank my friend who gifted me this charming cake book that has helped me share this recipe with you and brought delight to a lot of people :)))

If you do try this cake,I would love to hear your comments,it helps me share my food tales with you better !!!