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Recipe: The Benchmark – My Best Chocolate Cake

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My children are all grown up and all of them live away from me, so every time they come to visit, I always try to think of what they will enjoy eating during their stay. One of my sons loves chocolate cake, so this particular treat is the welcome home dish that I currently have in the oven, ahead of his next arrival. It looks so beautiful that I couldn’t resist picking up the camera – and subsequently came the idea of sharing the recipe with you too.

Before I began to bake, many years ago now, we would often order from a friend of ours who used to bake from her home in Chennai too. Hers was one of the most fantastic chocolate cakes we had ever tasted, and it remains the benchmark for us all. It served as my inspiration too, when I became a baker myself.

Creating this recipe of my own was the result of many trials, exploring recipes from across cookbooks and the Internet, tweaking them based on my taste and my experience. Eventually, I formed a chocolate cake recipe that hit the spot, and became a personal benchmark. While my almond cakes are the most popular among customers (hyperlink), it’s this chocolate cake that is my own family’s favourite.

When I think about the experiments that lead toward this recipe, and indeed many others, I feel grateful for my blogger and Instagram friends and the accounts I have followed over the years who inspired me – both in terms of food and in terms of photography.

But there are many things that I have been contemplating lately about the world of food blogging and how it is changing. Now that re:store’s own online presence is over seven years old, I am able to observe and comment on the vast shifts that have taken place in this time and I wonder about what is still to come. For instance – many of the people whose work I used to look forward to no longer post, or sometimes have even disappeared altogether. Even though new bloggers have come up, some equally fantastic, there was a sense of community in the past that is less experienced today. It all feels different now, both as a creator and as someone who enjoys the content. I wonder if you feel similarly, or if you have other thoughts?

Then, there is the dominance of reels. Food photography as a genre is dwindling, and to be honest I don’t see the kind of aesthetic that I used to love exploring online and which challenged me to keep growing as a photographer too. While I respect reels as their own format, they are not for me. Even as photography loses popularity, I pick up my camera time and again because it is an artform that I am passionate about, and because in certain ways I would define myself as being old school – especially in the sense that I believe that if the going is good, keep going.

The going is good, so to speak, when it comes to photography. I am just as enthused and as inspired as ever as a photographer, and some of you may know that my explorations in this medium go beyond shooting for this blog. I also work with still life and nature themes, and I’ve been fortunate to have received gallery support for the same, and I sometimes accept commercial commissions too.

I still approach every kind of shoot with my old and faithful Nikon and the lenses I’ve used all these years, and remain perfectly happy with the outcomes. I don’t intend to go in for an upgrade because I know I don’t need to. Although I love finding new appliances for the kitchen, somehow with photography the tried and tested just works for me. I like to think that my not constantly seeking out new technology helps reduce my personal impact on landfills. None of us is perfect and none of us is going to avoid creating waste, but being mindful about our consumer choices is something that is in our hands.

And when it comes to something that is literally in my hands – my camera – I really don’t want to let go of the instrument that has brought me so much creativity and joy. I will also say that I sometimes feel disturbed when people say, “Oh your photographs are so nice – you must have a good camera”. I do, but there is so much more to this artform than just the device. Even as trends move away from it, I continue to learn and to grow within it.

So yes: the world, and not just the world of food blogging, is always changing – but we can have some constants, too. A decadent chocolate cake will almost without fail please anyone, for instance. In that sense, this is a timeless dish, and I hope you’ll enjoy my version of it.

Chocolate Cake

(Serves 5-6)

2 cups sugar
1¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup hot water
1 tablespoon instant coffee
½ cup oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 170°. Prepare two 8’ cake tins by greasing, lining and dusting the pans.

Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt – thus combining the dry ingredients. Add sugar.

Separately, add hot water to the coffee powder. Keep aside.

Using a hand blender, mix the eggs, vanilla extract, oil and buttermilk. You can make buttermilk at home by adding a tablespoon of white vinegar to a cup of room temperature milk, and allowing it to sit for 15 minutes before usage.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet ones and mix well.

Add the hot coffee to this mixture now. The batter will be a little runny. Avoid over beating.

Pour this batter into the two tins equally and bake for 30-35 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. After the cakes sit for 15 minutes, turn them onto a tray and allow to cool completely. Decorate with chocolate icing.

If you’re new to all this and would like a little primer or refresher to the basics of baking, check out this citrus bundt recipe with lots of tips.

As I said earlier, this recipe is really the best one I know for the classic chocolate cake. I wonder how it will compare with ones you have made or tasted. I do hope you’ll enjoy it just as much as we do!

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Recipes

Recipe: “The Best Chocolate Cake In 27 Years!” – Classic Chocolate Cake

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With my kids being at home with me during the lockdown, I’ve found myself baking even more than usual – which is saying a lot! I’ve been enjoying this process, and as always I can’t help but reach out for my camera to challenge myself and indulge my creative side. With every new image of a cake that I post on Instagram, a flood of messages comes in, mostly from people asking for recipes. I’m so thankful to each and every one of you who enjoys my posts and I’m thrilled to share this recipe with you today.

The joke in the house is that I won’t share my cake recipes with my kids unless they bake along with me, which they rarely do. I’ve decided to make an exception as April happened to be my son’s birthday month, and I want to spread some happiness during what is a challenging time for all of us. This classic-style chocolate cake recipe is my gift to my son, to make use of when he returns to his city eventually, so he can remember all the bonding moments we shared together in these last few months. I am just as delighted to share it with you. As someone who took her first step into the world of entrepreneurship through the world of baking, I know just how much pleasure and empowerment and sheer comfort the process can bring. I hope you experience that delight today.

This chocolate cake is a repeat order in my house, so to speak, because it is my son’s favourite. Every single time I bake it, he relishes a generous slice and says, “Mom, today’s cake is the best one I’ve had in 27 years!” Every single time! Such appreciation truly makes my day. I’ve also noticed how there’s just something about cakes in particular that have such an uplifting effect. Perhaps that really is why they’re such a vital element of celebrations.

What I am sharing today is a no-fail or foolproof recipe. What’s lovely about it is that it is not very heavy, being oil-based. This also makes it very moist. It has a lovely, deep and rich colour which comes courtesy of the coffee powder used. The coffee powder enhances the cocoa flavour, and doesn’t impart even a whiff of its own flavour into the cake. Don’t be perturbed by it. This will not turn out to be a coffee cake. Follow the simple recipe step by step, and you’ll achieve a chocolate cake that is not cloyingly sweet, tastes absolutely delicious, and that you’ll no doubt bake over and over.

 

I hope that all of you baking for the first time because of the resultant free time due to the lockdown will also find the same comfort and satisfaction in it that I do. There are two things I’d like to share with beginner bakers. Firstly, I get a lot of questions about ingredient substitutes and shortcuts that go something like: “I don’t have baking powder; can I still bake a cake? How about without an oven?” My answer to them all is straightforward: baking is a science. It’s all about formulas and proportions. Once you’ve understood that, you can tweak ingredients, explore different flours and powders, and experiment. Until then, don’t start off on the wrong footing. Baking isn’t like cooking. It isn’t like replacing chilli powder with another spice. Every part of the process and every ingredient involved has a role to play when it comes to the final product of a cake.

Which brings me to the second major tip I have for beginner bakers: patience is key. If you’re in a hurry to see the end of the cake, it won’t happen! Enjoy the process.

I know that more people are binging on sweet treats now more than ever, so I’ll let you in on one more secret from the re:store kitchen. The key to moderation is not making less, it’s sharing more! A neighbour once asked my son, “Your mother bakes every day; how come you’re all so trim?” That’s because everything I put into the oven is split into many portions. For instance, whenever I bake this chocolate cake, everyone from family members to our household staff to our neighbours gets a slice. There’s a different quality of delight that comes when everyone partakes. Rest assured, there are never leftovers. It’s wonderful to bring that bit of sweetness into everyone’s day.

To my son: I hope this recipe travels with you through your life. Spending your birthday with the family, despite lockdown, was a beautiful occasion for us. Dressing up, dining together, cutting a cake, and bonding – we have been creating memories to cherish. I initially thought that we’d get on each others’ nerves, but I’m glad to be experiencing the opposite. We’re learning so much from each other about sharing and caring. Up until now, everyone was living in their own cities and doing their own thing, and sometimes I felt scared that I would be alone when I most needed it. Instead, the joy we’ve experienced in this time through being together reassures me of all the love that I have in my life.

 

Classic Chocolate Cake

(Serves 5)

Ingredients:

250 grams all purpose flour

85 grams unsweetened cocoa powder

400 grams powdered sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon coffee powder

120 ml oil

240 ml milk

2 tablespoons white vinegar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

240 ml hot water

 

Butter icing:

150 grams unsalted butter at room temperature

400 grams icing sugar

¾ cup cocoa powder

1 teaspoon vanilla essence

A few drops of milk, if needed

 

Preheat the oven to 170°C. Prepare two 8’ cake tins by greasing the tins and dusting them with flour. Line the bases with parchment paper. The parchment paper helps release the cakes easily from the tins, after baking. Two tins are used as this allows you to put a layer of chocolate icing between them.

In a bowl, add the milk (at room temperature) and the vinegar. This is called buttermilk. Set aside.

Sift the dry ingredients together: flour, cocoa powder, salt, sugar, baking soda and baking powder.

In another bowl, add the eggs, oil, buttermilk and vanilla essence and mix them together.  If you’d like to, you can use orange or mint essence instead of the vanilla to give the cake a different flavour.

Now, add this wet mixture to the dry mixture and fold well, making sure there are no lumps. Do not over-beat. Next, add the coffee powder to the hot water to create a slightly thin liquid. Add this to the cake mixture too.

Now, pour the batter evenly into the prepared tins and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean when you insert it.

Remove the tins from the oven and allow them to cool for 10-15 minutes. When cooled, flip the cake tins, remove the parchment paper and cool the cakes on a rack. Then, flip them back again (top side up).

While the cakes are cooling, prepare the icing. Stir the butter and dry ingredients with a spoon first, otherwise you’ll have the cocoa powder and sugar flying out of the bowl. Add the cocoa powder and vanilla essence, and slowly add the icing sugar until the mixture reaches a spreadable texture. Only once the mixture has been partially incorporated should you use a handheld blender. Beat until creamy. If required, add milk to achieve the consistency you desire. Store in the refrigerator.

Once the cakes have cooled to room temperature, you can frost and layer them to form a single cake. Here’s a video of the frosting – tempting, isn’t it?

Level the tops of both cakes with a sharp knife, until they are flat and even. Place one layer on a cake stand. Frost the top, and then gently place the second layer over it. Now, frost the top of this as well. If you have any kind of toppings on hand that you’d like to use, such as confectionery or fruit, go ahead and decorate the cake as you wish.

The trick to making clean slices lies in a half hour of refrigeration after frosting, so don’t skip this step before you serve it.

At a time like this, I believe that sharing something uplifting and refreshing is the need of the hour, and I could think of no better recipe that would do that than this beautiful chocolate cake. We should all remain in positive spirits, hoping and praying for the best and resisting feeling pulled down. I want you to feel good when a notification about a new post from me arrives. So I want you to tell me: what are some recipes you’d like to see on the blog in future? Looking forward to hearing your wishes in the comments!

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