Fred's tips
Why not try adding some edible dried flower petals and freeze dried strawberries
- Prep Time: 25 Min
- Cooking Time: 35 Min
- Difficulty: Easy
- Makes: 1 Whole Cake
Ingredients
- Sponge Cake
- 300g Homepride Plain Flour
- 100g Cocoa Powder
- 2tsp Baking Powder
- 280g Soft Brown Sugar
- 140g Caster Sugar
- 300ml Buttermilk
- 225g Unsalted Soft Butter
- 2tsp Vanilla Extract
- 3 Large Eggs
- 150ml Boiling Water Mixed With 1.5tbsp Coffee Granules
- Chocolate Ganache
- 300g Milk Chocolate (chopped)
- 400ml Double Cream
- Dipped Strawberries in Chocolate
- 50g Milk Chocolate (chopped)
- 6 Strawberries
- Freeze Dried Strawberry Pieces
- Optional Decoration
- Freeze Dried Strawberries
- 3 Strawberries (couple quartered)
- Edible Dried Flower Petals
Print this recipe
Method
- Preheat oven to 160*fan
- Grease and line 2 x 8” round tins
- Cream butter and sugar together until fluffy and light. Place all dried ingredients into a large bowl, then add butter and sugar mixture, vanilla, eggs and buttermilk and mix well. Add cooled coffee and mix well.
- Divide mixture between two tins and bake for 35-40 minutes until springy to touch, or when a skewer poked in the middle comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then turn onto a cooling rack to cool.
- While sponges are cooking, make the ganache. Put cream in a pan and heat until just beginning to boil then pour over chopped chocolate in a bowl. Leave for a couple of minutes before stirring to a silky ganache, pop in fridge and leave to cool until ganache is thick enough to spread.
- In a bowl over a pan of simmering water, add chocolate and stir until melted.
- Dip strawberries into chocolate, and scatter with freeze dried strawberry pieces and leave to set on a baking sheet or some baking paper.
- Place one sponge onto a plate or cake stand, and spread a good layer of ganache all over. Top with other sponge, then spread ganache over the top and around the sides of the cake, reserving a little to pipe on top. Smooth with a knife or palette knife.
- Decorate top with chocolate dipped strawberries, sliced strawberries, edible flowers and a scattering of freeze dried strawberries. Pipe little ganache stars on top, and decorate base with freeze dried strawberries.