Rich chocolate cake with strawberries and minted sugar
Rich chocolate cake with strawberries and minted sugar
Ingredients
Cake
- 4 cups (600g) hazelnuts, roasted, skins removed, or 570g hazelnut meal
- 250g good-quality milk chocolate, chopped
- 250g unsalted butter, chopped
- 2 tbsp instant coffee granules
- 6 eggs, separated
- 1 cup (220g) caster sugar, plus extra 2 tbs
Topping
- 1 cup mint leaves, plus extra to serve
- 250g punnet strawberries, halved if large
- Thickened cream, to serve
Instructions
- 1
Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease and line a 28cm loose-bottomed cake pan.
- 2
Process hazelnuts in a food processor until finely ground. Set aside.
- 3
Melt chocolate and butter in a bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water (don't let the bowl touch the water), stirring until smooth. Dissolve the coffee in 1/4 cup (60ml) boiling water, then stir into chocolate mixture. Cool.
- 4
Using electric beaters, beat yolks and sugar until thick and pale. Fold in cooled chocolate mixture, followed by hazelnut.
- 5
In a clean bowl, using electric beaters, whisk eggwhites to soft peaks, then gently fold into chocolate mixture. Spread batter into pan, then bake for 40 minutes or until cooked through (loosely cover with foil if browning too quickly). Cool in pan for 15 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
40 min - 6
To make minted sugar, whiz mint and extra 2 tbs sugar in a food processor until combined and bright green. Transfer to a bowl and toss with strawberries, then pile on top of cake. Drizzle with cream and garnish with extra mint leaves.