All-in-one chocolate cake

All-in-one chocolate cake

Lulu Grimes shares her cooking secrets for the very best (and simplest) chocolate cake

Difficulty and servings

Easy

Cuts into 8 slices

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 35 mins

Cook time

Cook 25 mins

plus cooling

Method

  1. Heat the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. Butter and base-line 2 x 18cm sandwich tins. Take 3 tbsp flour from the full flour amount and put it back in the bag - the cocoa powder will make up the difference.
  2. Put all the cake ingredients (not the double cream) in a large bowl and beat them together with an electric whisk until you have a creamy mixture. Add a little milk if the mix is too stiff - it should fall easily from a spoon. Divide the mixture between the prepared tins and level the surfaces of the cake mixtures. Bake on the same shelf in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until the sponge springs back when pressed. Cool for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack, peel off the base paper and cool completely.
  3. To make the icing, melt the butter and chocolate together in a microwave, or in a bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir well, then leave until it's cool enough to spread easily and will run a little.
  4. Whip the cream and use it to sandwich together the cakes. Spread chocolate ganache over the top of the cake, letting some run over the edge. Decorate with chocolate curls.
Try

Change the flavour: White chocolate and rapsberry

Omit the cocoa and leave the flour at 175g. Stir a handful of white chocolate chips into the mix before baking. In the icing, swap dark chocolate for white, melt it without the butter and fold it into 150g half-fat mascarpone instead. Add a layer of fresh raspberries to the filling.

Change the flavour: Millionaires' caramel

Add 1 tbsp extra cocoa powder to the cake mix, swap the cream filling for dulche de leche or carnation caramel.

Change the flavour: Chocolate & orange

Make the cake mix and add the zest of 2 oranges and a handful of dark chocolate chips. Add the zest of an orange and a little icing sugar to the whipped cream

Dark chocolate

Lulu prefers to use ordinary dark chocolate, which has a little added sweetness, for this kind of icing - you can use 70% chocolate, but you may need to sweeten the icing with a little sugar if it tastes very strong and bitter.

Per serving

711 kcalories, protein 6.3g, carbohydrate 49.7g, fat 55.4 g, saturated fat 32.2g, fibre 1.3g, salt 0.67 g

Recipe from olive magazine, April 2010.

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Latest comments and suggestions

Results 1-20

  • Binder photo Kaz's Binder

    01 April 2010

    Kaz's Binder rated and commented on this recipe

    3 stars

    I sized up on this as my tins are 20cm so used a 225g mix, did the millionaires version. Nice but not as good as the Ultimate Chocolate Cake that gets rave reviews everytime.

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  • Binder photo Gabriela

    02 April 2010

    Gabriela rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    I did it with corn flour, because my mum is gluten free also used quark instead of double cream and add more chocolate and less butter for the icing, we prefer that. Anyway it went well and it taste delicious!! My mum said its like a fairytale :)

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  • Binder photo Julie Bahrain

    06 April 2010

    Julie Bahrain rated and commented on this recipe

    4 stars

    Was never going to be as good as the Ultimate Chocolate Cake as it doesn't have melted chocolate in the mixture, however it is a nice, light cake. Don't know why but ours spilled over the top of the tins! This mixture would make a good base for a quick Black Forest Gateau.

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  • Binder photo pendragon

    15 April 2010

    pendragon rated this recipe

    2 stars

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  • Binder photo LadyBugg

    08 May 2010

    LadyBugg rated and commented on this recipe

    4 stars

    Baked it for my dad's birthday. It was delicious and highly praised :) and it is a really no fuss recipe.

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  • Binder photo Gigi

    22 May 2010

    Gigi commented on this recipe

    is this recipe really hard to make?

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  • Binder photo Fluffy

    25 May 2010

    Fluffy rated this recipe

    4 stars

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  • Binder photo Elaine

    07 June 2010

    Elaine rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Loved it - its my first time I have made a chocolate cake and my hubby and friends loved it

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  • Binder photo fondantkiss

    15 July 2010

    fondantkiss commented on this recipe

    Simply Deeeelicious! So very easy and stunning results. I topped mine with fresh juicy strawberries.

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  • Binder photo xxangixx

    09 August 2010

    xxangixx rated and commented on this recipe

    2 stars

    Having followed the recipe to the letter the cake looked good but I found this cake to be a bit bland and bitter. Prefer a richer more moist cake.

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  • Binder photo RoNeY:)

    12 January 2012

    RoNeY:) commented on this recipe

    hello people... I was thinking of spraying little sugar syrup on th cake so tat it will be a bit moist..!! is it a gud idea????? and after that layer it wil cream nd stuff..!!

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  • Binder photo RoNeY:)

    12 January 2012

    RoNeY:) commented on this recipe

    hello people... I was thinking of spraying little sugar syrup on th cake so tat it will be a bit moist..!! is it a gud idea????? and after that layer it wil cream nd stuff..!!

    Flag as inappropriate

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  • Binder photo RoNeY:)

    12 January 2012

    RoNeY:) commented on this recipe

    hello people... I was thinking of spraying little sugar syrup on th cake so tat it will be a bit moist..!! is it a gud idea????? and after that layer it wil cream nd stuff..!!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo RoNeY:)

    12 January 2012

    RoNeY:) commented on this recipe

    hello people... I was thinking of spraying little sugar syrup on th cake so tat it will be a bit moist..!! is it a gud idea????? and after that layer it wil cream nd stuff..!!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo RoNeY:)

    12 January 2012

    RoNeY:) commented on this recipe

    hello people... I was thinking of spraying little sugar syrup on th cake so tat it will be a bit moist..!! is it a gud idea????? and after that layer it wil cream nd stuff..!!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo RoNeY:)

    12 January 2012

    RoNeY:) commented on this recipe

    hello people... I was thinking of spraying little sugar syrup on th cake so tat it will be a bit moist..!! is it a gud idea????? and after that layer it wil cream nd stuff..!!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo RoNeY:)

    12 January 2012

    RoNeY:) commented on this recipe

    hello people... I was thinking of spraying little sugar syrup on th cake so tat it will be a bit moist..!! is it a gud idea????? and after that layer it wil cream nd stuff..!!

    Flag as inappropriate

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  • Binder photo Ilovechocolatecake

    22 January 2012

    Ilovechocolatecake commented on this recipe

    I tired it for the first time it was absolutely lush!! But instead of dark chocolate we used cadbury's :D

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  • Binder photo alexa_4912

    12 March 2012

    alexa_4912 commented on this recipe

    Very nice. Made for my friend's birthday and he and our other friends loved it, as did I. Made it pretty much exactly as per the recipe, although I found I didn't use all the icing or the cream (I used it the next day to make whoopie pies!) Very easy to make, although it takes a while to do all the different elements.

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  • Binder photo zoehurd

    27 July 2012

    zoehurd rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Really good and chocolates try putting some of the double cream in the ganache

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Difficulty and servings

Easy

Cuts into 8 slices

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 35 mins

Cook time

Cook 25 mins

plus cooling

Ingredients

  • 175g self-raising flour , sifted
  • 3 tbsp 70% cocoa powder
  • 175g unsalted butter , completely softened
  • 175g golden caster sugar
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 3 eggs
  • 1-2 tbsp milk
  • 300ml pot double cream

FOR THE GANACHE ICING

  • 100g butter , cubed
  • 100g dark chocolate , chopped plus extra to decorate
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Per serving

711 kcalories, protein 6.3g, carbohydrate 49.7g, fat 55.4 g, saturated fat 32.2g, fibre 1.3g, salt 0.67 g

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