Recipe: Flora Shedden's chocolate rye cake

chocolate rye cake flora shedden 1.jpg

The Great British Bake Off is well and truly back and while tomorrow’s episode is bread week we can’t stop thinking about this exquisite chocolate cake recipe from former contestant, Flora Shedden.

For Flora Shedden, baking is all about capturing the time and rhythm of the day, savouring little moments to yourself. Inspired by the recipes and stories from her Dunkeld-based bakery of the same name, Flora’s book ARAN is a beautiful journey throughout the day with recipes for every hour—from warm-from-the-oven pastries to thickly-sliced loaf cake to enjoy for elevenses.

We asked Flora to share her favourite chocolate recipe which evokes the comforting feeling of sharing delicious home baking with loved ones. This chocolate rye cake is the ultimate for chocolate lovers.

Chocolate rye cake recipe

Ingredients (serves 8):

  • 100g dark chocolate, 70% cocoa solids

  • 100g unsalted butter

  • 4 eggs

  • 75g caster sugar

  • 50g light brown sugar

  • 50g rye flour

  • 25g cocoa powder, plus extra for dusting

  • 6 tablespoons amaretto or Kahlua

  • Crème fraiche, to serve

Method:

  1. Preheat the oven to 160°C. Grease and line a 20cm loose-bottomed cake tin.

  2. Melt the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl over a half-filled pan of boiling water, making sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water. Alternatively, you can do this directly over a very low heat, just be sure to stir it all the time to prevent the chocolate from burning. Set aside to cool.

  3. In the bowl of a free-standing mixer, whisk the eggs and sugars until thick and pale. Mix the rye and cocoa together in a small bowl. With the mixer on a low speed, carefully add the cocoa mixture to the eggs, a spoonful at a time. Next, whisky your chosen booze into the cooled chocolate, then pour this mixture in a slow stream into the egg mixture.

  4. Turn off the mixer, then stir gently by hand once fully combined to make sure no chocolate has sunk to the bottom. Pour into the prepared tin from a low height so as not to lose any aeration. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the cake has nearly set but still has a wobble in the middle.

  5. Allow to cool completely in the tin. Dust with a little cocoa, then serve with a big dollop of crème fraiche.

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