DARK CHOCOLATE BIRTHDAY CAKE RECIPES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Butter the base and sides of two 20cm round sandwich tins and line the bases with baking parchment.
• In a large bowl, beat together 200g golden caster sugar, 200g softened unsalted butter, 4 large eggs, 200g self-raising flour, 2 tbsp cocoa powder, 1 tsp baking powder, ½ tsp vanilla extract, 2 tbsp milk and a pinch of salt until pale.
• Divide the mixture between the prepared tins. Bake for 20 mins or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
• Leave to cool in the tin for 10 mins, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
• For the buttercream, put 100g chopped milk chocolate in a heatproof bowl and melt in the microwave, stirring every 30 secs. Leave the melted chocolate to cool for 5 mins.
• Mash 200g softened butter and 400g icing sugar together with a fork, then switch to a wooden spoon or electric beaters, if you have them.
• Sift in 5 tbsp cocoa powder with a pinch of salt and pour in the melted chocolate and 2 tbsp milk. Mix again until smooth.
• On a cake stand or large plate, sandwich the cakes together with half of the buttercream, then spread the rest on top. Decorate with chocolate shards, if you like.
• To make chocolate shards: melt 50g dark chocolate and pour it onto a tray lined with baking parchment or foil.
• Now melt 25g milk chocolate and 25g white chocolate and drizzle them over the dark chocolate before it sets.
• Shake the tray gently to level the mixture then leave to set somewhere cool. Chop into shards.

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Line 2 x deep 20cm springform cake tins with baking paper. Stir together the flour and cocoa in a bowl. Melt the chocolate, sugar and butter with 100ml water in a pan until smooth, then leave to cool.
• Once cooled, transfer to a mixing bowl and whisk in the eggs one by one until combined, followed by the vanilla extract. Slowly whisk the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until fully combined.
• Divide the batter between the cake tins and bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer poked into the middles comes out clean. It may crack a little on top but this will be covered by the icing. Leave to cool.
• To make the buttercream, use electric beaters to whisk together the icing sugar and butter for 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Mix in the melted chocolate until smooth and the buttercream becomes spreadable. Put a thick layer of buttercream on top of one of the cakes, then sandwich the other sponge on top. Spread another thick layer on top, then use the rest to cover the sides. Leave to set in the fridge for 20 minutes.
• To make the topping, use a large knife or peeler to scrape across the surface of the chocolate to create curls and shards. Use these to top the cake along with a light dusting of cocoa powder.