Choccy Horror Show
And by horror, I of course mean FILTH. We're packing in a TONNE chocolate laden bakes ahead of Easter for everyone, including my Salted Black Chocolate & Condensed Milk Layered Cake. 16 layers of YUM.
Hey Friends!
I hope you have all had a lovely week so far? I have been up to my eyeballs in recipe writing so have rarely seen outside the four walls of my kitchen this week but my my myyyyyy – hasn’t the weather been glorious this week? Truly and utterly gorgeous. It’s been nothing but beautiful blue skies, with barely a hint of any sort of cloud. Oooof. Aperol Spritz season is so nearly here baby and I cannot wait.
I am going to try and keep the intro short for this week as when I say we have A LOT of recipes to get through in the newsy, I ain’t lying. 10 glorious recipes which means 10 times the yum but let’s be real, that’s also ten times the amount of rambles and boy, does Rubes ramble am I right?
I always fear that when it comes to writing the intros and recap on my last 2 weeks that my life sounds very uneventful or fun packed in comparison to what I see others doing across social media. Truth be told, now I’m no longer a London girly, I have well and truly embraced country living.
Nothing brings me more joy than being woken up in the morning by the birds chirping incessantly outside the bedroom window. Back in London? That was a police siren. All. The. Time. Now I go for daily walks to go see the donkeys and say hello to everyone who passes by, whether I know them or not. Back in London? You could get yourself in serious trouble for even just making eye contact with someone. Speaking to them would just be mad behaviour. Long gone is my toxic, one sided relationship with Deliveroo. Here? Here I am heavily debating making vegetable patches in the garden.
VEGETABLE PATCHES PEOPLE. WHO AM I??
But on a serious note, I will happily take any helpful advice on starting this project because the sheer thought of eating a tomato I have grown myself makes me want to mildly combust with smug induced joy. I am also currently obsessively monitoring the wisteria growing on the front of the house multiple times a day to keep an eye on the progress and I am so excited for when they fully bloom. I have always dreamed of a home that was glittered with those gorgeous purple hued flowers so now finally having that feels like a dream. Spring has truly sprung and it’s giving me that much needed pep in my step.
If past Rubes could read the above right now, she’d spit her water out in disbelief but folks, I’m either old or just appreciating different things and I hope to God, it is just the latter.
And before we dive into what’s on the menu this week – another reminder that One Bake Two Ways has been chosen UHGAIN by Amazon to be featured this month (yay!) so currently it’s available for a limited time deal at £13.25 with 49% off for my UK folks – the perfect treat for all and a super handy book to have by your side this Easter if you are looking for more inspo or catering for any dairy-free/plant based friends.
I would THOROUGHLY recommend making the Malt & Milk Chocolate Tiramisu for anyone putting on a bit of a feast. It’s easy going, easy to make, crowd pleasing and sumptuously delicious. It’s truly one of my all-time fave bakes I’ve ever done and it never fails to disappoint. With not a drop of coffee in sight, it’s a family friendly pud which will have you all fighting for any leftovers.
As promised folks, this week is a bonanza issue, packed full of sweet treats, perfect for any Easter gathering. Here we have a mish mash of new recipes and bits from the archive which you may have missed. Some classic, delicious, filthy bakes – no matter what your skillset. 10 recipes up for grabs this week. That’s 9 lots of choccy and a little bit of lemon to balance it all out.
For everyone, there is:
Lemon and Raspberry Crumble Cake
Chocolate & Almond Brownie Tart
Double Baked Chocolate Meringue Cake
Chocolate & Honeycomb Loaf
Triple Chocolate & Cinnamon Babka
Because this is going to be a monster newsy, I’ll let the pics do the talking.
And for my Extra Bite friends, we have:
Salted Black Chocolate & Condensed Milk Layer Cake
Triple Threat Chocolate Cake (think chocolate sponge, chocolate mousse and chocolate ganache)
Chocolate Fudge Cake w Dulce de Leche Whipped Mascarpone
Whipped Peanut Butter Cream Cheese & Raspberry Cake w a hard Chocolate Frosting (think cracking into an easter egg and finding actual stuff in there).
Chocolate & Pistachio Mousse Cake
Starting off with a nice easy, simple to make, easy to bake kinda cake. This is the recipe I put together to help teach my Mum a thing or two about baking. I learnt everything I know about cooking from my Mum but got absolutely zero knowledge passed over on the cake side of life.
How to make roti? With my eyes closed. Lamb curry? No problem. Chicken biryani? Could make it since I hit double digits. But a simple cake? Nope.
Don’t get me wrong, she’d give it a good go but her measurements don’t come regulated – there is no such thing as a tsp or tbsp or even grams. Everything is done as a pinch (please note Kelly B is tiny, comes up to my shoulders and wears size 3 shoes so her hands are equally as small so her pinch is basically non-existent) or she cups her teeny tiny hand and uses that as a way to measure her flour.
Yup. That’s what we are working with here. Her speciality bakes go from her 3 ingredient biscuits to fairy cakes flatter than a pancake so I’ve been wanting to get her in the kitchen with me for a while so I can help add something new to her repertoire. Something that feels fancy but is really easy to put together and can take on a variety of flavours to suit whatever the occasion. And with a smidgen of guidance, she managed to nail this one.
It’s a take on a simple but classic loaf cake which can be dressed up or down, served solo or topped with whipped coconut cream and eaten on your own or in good company. Made up of a zesty, zingy, sumptuously moist lemon sponge, studded with raspberries for a touch of sweetness and finished with a lightly cinnamon spiced crumble to top. Easy to make, even easier to eat. My kinda maths. This is Kelly B’s Lemon & Raspberry Crumble Cake.
Recipe Makes: 1 x 2 lb Loaf
Recipe Serves: 8 good slices
Y O U – W I L L – N E E D -
Crumble
60 g Plain Flour
20 g Salted Butter, fridge temp
20 g All Things Butter Cinnamon Bun, fridge temp (sub for salted plus ¼ tsp cinnamon powder)
20 g Caster Sugar
Sponge
180 g Caster Sugar
30 g Lemon Zest (approx. 5 large)
150 g Unsalted Butter, diced & room temp
75 ml Veg Oil
3 Large Eggs
200 g Plain/AP Flour, sifted
50 g Ground Almonds
1.5 tsp Baking Powder, sifted
0.25 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
0.25 tsp Salt
50 ml Soured Cream, room temp
40 ml Lemon Juice, fresh
120 g Frozen Raspberries plus 20 g Flour
Lemon Syrup
40 ml Water
40 ml Lemon Juice, fresh
50 g Caster Sugar
To Serve: Coconut Whipped Cream
200 ml Double/Whipping Cream
100 ml Coconut Cream
25 g Icing Sugar, sifted
½ tsp Vanilla Bean Paste
M E T H O D –
Preheat the oven to 160C/320F/Gas Mark 3 and grease and overline a 2 lb deep loaf tin. Leave to one side.
For the crumble, add the flour and butters to a bowl. Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs.
Add the caster sugar, mix and rub in until the breadcrumbs become clumpy and chunky. Leave to one side.
For the sponge, add the caster sugar and lemon zest to a mixer bowl. Use the paddle attachment to mix on medium for a few minutes to release the oils from the zest.
Add the butter and oil and beat on medium to high for 5 minutes until the butter is light and aerated.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well between each addition. You want this to be one smooth mix before you move on.
In a separate bowl, add your flour, ground almond, baking powder, bicarb and salt. Mix with a balloon whisk before adding that in thirds to the mixer bowl, alongside the soured cream and lemon juice.
Once there are little flour streaks visible, break down the frozen raspberries into small chunks and dust in 20 g flour to coat.
Add the raspberries (including surplus flour) to the batter, gently fold through before pouring into your lined tin.
Scatter the reserved crumble on top before placing onto the middle shelf in the oven for 60 to 65 minutes (check halfway to make sure the top isn’t browning too much, cover with foil if so).
Whilst the sponge is baking, make the sugar syrup by adding everything to a pan and placing it over a medium heat. Bring to the boil, before turning down the heat and allowing the syrup to simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.
Once the sponge has baked, remove from the oven and allow it to sit and cool in the tin for 10 minutes.
Carefully remove from the tin onto a sheet of clingfilm/saran wrap. Use a pastry brush to liberally brush over the syrup over the sides and lightly over the top. Wrap the loaf in the clingfilm and leave it to cool at room temp for an hour before popping in the fridge to chill.
Before serving, allow the loaf to sit at room temp for 2 hours and make the coconut whipped cream. Add all the ingredients to a mixer bowl and use the whisk attachment to mix on a low speed until the cream reaches medium peak.
Once the cake has come up to room temperature, slice and serve alongside a good dollop of whipped coconut cream and a light dusting of icing sugar to finish.
As this is going to be a long old newsy, and to avoid anyone losing rapid interest because of how lengthy it is, let’s move swiftly onto the hoard of chocolate laden bakes deserving of anyone’s table this Easter. Whether you celebrate it or choose to just join in with the chocolate eating festivities, one thing about me is that I will ALWAYS opt for a chocolate dessert over gnawing on a slab of chocolate. As shocking as this may seem – as I am sure we are all aware of how chocolate obsessed I am – you’ll rarely catch me eating a bar of chocolate. But in a cake? HOLY MOLY, watch me turn feral in 3 seconds flat.
So with that in mind, let me showcase 9 other sweet treats for you to drool, dream and deliberate over.
Chocolate & Almond Brownie Tart
Recipe Makes: 1 x 25 cm / 10 inch tart
Recipe Serves: 10
It tastes every bit as indulgent as it sounds but we are breaking down something that sounds super complex, into something that is easy to make at home. The velvety rich brownie filling sits on top of a crisp Chocolate & Almond Sweet Shortcrust Pastry and is topped with a Salted Hazelnut Praline and smothered with a cloud of Vanilla Bean Chantilly Cream.
This is the sort of bake that you can easily dissect and make your own. It’s a little something that if you didn’t like one component, you could enjoy another, all whilst perhaps teaching you a new skill or help you master something you’ve never tried. Whilst you could completely sack off the entire bake and just bake the filling as brownies in their own right, we are using that deliciously, rich, fudgy filth to fill a chocolate pastry case.
If that’s not enough to convince you – LOOK AT IT.
It’s indulgent, it’s naughty, it’s salty, sweet, sumptuous and divine. It’s one hell of a sexy slice and a glorious little treat. I use a deep tart tin to bake all my tart cases (approx. 2.5 inch deep) and had some surplus brownie mix so used that to make some muffins and wow – my sister has never hoovered up something so quick. I blinked and all 6 muffin bites had gone, and her response was “no regrets”. Love that energy from her.
Next time I make this, I’m going to play around with adding the praline layer to the base of the tart so that glorious golden layer sits in between the pastry and brownie. Is this just for aesthetics? Absolutely. Wherever you decide to shove that praline, it’s going to be heaven.
Double Baked Chocolate Meringue Cake
Recipe Makes: 1 x 20 cm / 8 inch cake
Recipe Serves: 8
I shared this one on here not long ago but wanted to get this back on the menu because a) it truly is that good and b) everyone knows someone who has a gluten intolerance and THIS is the perfect crowd pleasing bake to cater for that.
It's warming, it's indulgent, it's annoyingly delicious and utterly filthy. Whether you're hosting friends, family or just yourself, this naughty little number will tickle just about everyone's pickle whatever the season, whatever the reason. There is something about slicing into that crisp meringue shell hiding its gooey, marshmallowy filling, sitting on that velvety smooth, melt in the mouth chocolate sponge/brownie/fondant barely baked smush. WOWEE WOW. She is a showstopper of a dessert, one that doesn’t require a tonne of skill to make and also doesn’t require much cooling time which means it’s in your tum in no time.
Theres lots of ways in which you can jazz this recipe up and make it your own. I’ve played around with using Black Dutch Processed Cocoa Powder as opposed to normal cocoa for a smoother, richer chocolatey flavour and love adding some Amarena Cherries on top of the choccy sponge before topping with the meringue. Introducing a hidden layer of fruit into the mix helps to balance out the overall sweetness and DO NOT SKIP THE SALT. Balancing the sweetness with a touch of salt helps to make this cake moreish and not sickly sweet.
Chocolate & Honeycomb Loaf
Recipe Makes: 1 x 2lb Loaf
Recipe Serves: 10
I have made it no secret in the past that I ADORE honeycomb. Whatever form it comes in – whether it rocks up on its own or comes covered in choccy, I am having it. But my fave form of all time is when it comes as a dust. I am not saying I invented honeycomb dust butttttttt I haven’t seen it used or be commonly referenced to, so I often refer to it as my little secret baking weapon.
It’s perfect for introducing into buttercreams, sprinkling on top of ice cream, folding through meringue, rippling through cake batters, adding a scoop to biscuit doughs – the lot. Here we are using it to make a whipped mascarpone cream which sits pretty on top of a fudgey chocolatey loaf and is then drowned with a warm chocolate sauce. Sprinkle a little magic dust aka honeycomb on top and that my friends, is a slice of nice I’d bite your hand off for.
Depending on the size of your loaf tin, there may be surplus cake batter which you can then use to make cupcakes/muffins. Upon a few different tests, I was able to get one whole loaf PLUS 6 cupcakes which feels like a total win? You mean I can have my cake big AND small???? Jackpot baby. If you do indeed decide to cupcake it, bake at the same temperature for 18 to 20 minutes. We love a multifaceted, multi-serving bake over here. And by we, I mean me, myself and I.
Triple Chocolate & Cinnamon Babka
Recipe Makes: 2 x 2lb Loaf
Recipe Serves: tbc. I can’t comment as I ate one loaf solo.
If you don’t know what a babka is, I also refer to this as swirly twirly bread for obvious reasons and hopefully that does the trick in giving you some idea as to what this is. Cause one lot of chocolate isn’t enough, I’ve tripled (there is a solid case to say its actually quadrupled) it and then teamed it with a peanut butter glaze which sounds wild but it works TRUST ME. Each slice is a surprise, each bite is addictive and each time you’ll tell yourself no more and then immediately find yourself gobbling down another hunky chunk of it. A good weekend baking project for anyone looking to flex their skills a little.
I’ve spent a long time re-developing a recipe from my book (which fyi, has an incredible Chocolate Streusel variety, using homemade nutella) to make the final product smaller, easier to consume and quicker to make. With this excellent variation, we have the 3 essential food groups well looked after – carbs, tick. Chocolate, tick. Cinnamon Butter, tick.
The bread is pillowy soft, smothered in a chocolate and cinnamon sugar butter, topped with a chocolate biscuit crumb (adds a nice fudginess to the mix), nuggets of chopped chocolate and finished with a glorious mildly salted chocolate glaze. OOOOWEEEE she’s a goodie. I used the Cinnamon Bun Butter I developed for All Things Butter in this recipe but you can substitute with Unsalted Butter plus 1 tsp of Cinnamon Powder. As for any nut allergies for the Peanut Butter, you can opt for a different nut butter or just remove entirely.
I know I say this often but trust me when I say I fell HARD for this bake. Like fully, completely, utterly, head over heels, goo goo eyes, sorta love. My only advice? Bake the two loaves – share one, eat the other like an apple solo. No slicing, just straight chomping.
5 recipes down, just another 5 to go! Moving onto the main bake this week, we have my Salted Black Chocolate & Condensed Milk Layered Cake. 8 layers of sumptuously soft, deliciously delicate, moreishly moist chocolate fudge cake, sandwiched between a brown sugar and condensed milk swiss meringue buttercream. It sounds like it should be far too sweet but the flavours have been beautifully balanced to produce something that tastes lighter than air. I love the contrasting spring time vibe on the outside teamed with the dark, deep moody middle but this for me, is a PERFECT, centrepiece for a little Easter soiree.
She’s giving all cutesy on the outside but with the right amount of edge in the middle. It looks like it’s a lot of effort to whip together and I am ohhhhh so pleased to let you know that it is NOT. Nope. This is quite honestly one of the more simpler cakes I have shared to date on here – the only complex bit is baking 8 individual sponges (good luck if you opt to bake as two and slice each in 4 – that is a hell I do not wish to stumble upon) and the swiss meringue buttercream. BUT we have broken down that buttercream many a time on the newsy and this variation is no different.
In the main body of the newsy, you’ll find pics and videos of what consistency you should be looking for when it comes to making the buttercream, plus the usual detail and ramble which will get you confidently through.
Decorated in my normal whimsy, more flowers the better, sorta style – she’s a pretty little thing for spring. I adore this recipe so much and teamed with how effortlessly it all came together (the sponges bake in 12 minutes flat), I am itching for strawbs to come into season so I can make a strawberry gateaux style version.
If you wish to go full hog with the chocolate on this cake, switch out the condensed milk buttercream for a chocolate fudge frosting instead. 8 layers of chocolate fudge sponge teamed with 8 layers of fudge frosting? Holy moly. When you make that, send me the invite (or at the very least pics please).
Recipe Makes: 8 x 18 cm / 7 inch sponges
Recipe Serves: 12
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