Jane Asher's chocolate cake

Ingredients for the chocolate cake mixture

Ingredients for the buttercream

100g/4 oz butter, softened
175g/7 oz icing sugar, sifted
1 tablespoon of Fairtrade ground coffee, or 1½ teaspoons of Fairtrade instant coffee.

Method for the chocolate cake

Preheat oven to 190°C / 375°F/ Gas Mark 5
Grease and line the base of a deep 23cm/9 inch round cake tin
Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, then beat in egg yolks one at a time, and then stir in the melted Maya Gold chocolate
Whisk egg whites until stiff, then fold in sugar to make meringue. Alternately fold in flour and meringue to the chocolate mix
Transfer mix to tin and bake for 45-55 minutes, or until the cake is firm to touch and a skewer can be withdrawn cleanly
Leave to cool in the tin, then transfer to a cooling rack until cold
Split cake in half and fill with Fairtrade coffee buttercream.

Method for the buttercream

Infuse the ground coffee in a tablespoon of boiled water, then strain; or dissolve the instant coffee in half a teaspoon of boiling water
Beat the butter until light and fluffy
Add the icing sugar to the mix a little at the time, beating well in between
Gradually beat in the coffee.

Thanks to the Fairtrade Foundation and Jane Asher for this recipe. Have a look at more recipes from the Fairtrade Foundation.

This page was last updated on 4 October 2009