simplicity

A good recipe is hard to come by.

One that uses the most basic ingredients and doesn't requires lots of sugar and fat in order to yield moist tender crumbs is even harder to find.

I am lucky to come across this simple Chocolate Cake recipe from a bread making book.

Although it looks very much like a pound cake, it is actually a sponge cake. The batter is prepared by beating eggs and sugar, whereas a pound cake is made by creaming butter and sugar. The original recipe calls for dairy cream but I took the liberty to replace it with plain, natural yoghurt. I am quite certain that the result is not too far off from the original intention. Even though I could have deflated the batter a little, the cake rose nicely and even form a pretty crack on its own, that is, without having to 'slit' the batter, a step which is quite essential if you are baking a pound cake.

The texture of the cake is slightly on the dense side, but still taste moist and tender...a cross between a sponge cake and a pound cake. What I like most is the simple chocolaty taste.  This recipe is a keeper.



Chocolate Sponge Cake

Ingredients
(makes one small 18cmx9cmx7cm loaf cake )

80g cake flour
20g cocoa powder (I used Valrhona cocoa powder)
3g baking powder
1g baking soda
1g salt
2 large eggs, room temperature
90g caster sugar (I used golden caster sugar)
50ml vegetable oil (I used canola oil)
50g natural plain yoghurt, room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

• Line a 18cmx9cmx7cm loaf pan with parchment paper. Set aside
• Sift cake flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt, at least 3 times. Set aside.
• Whisk eggs and sugar in a mixing bowl with an electric mixer on high speed until the batter triple in volume, thickens and leaves a ribbon-like trail when the paddle is lifted up. Takes about 5 mins. Turn to low speed, whisk for another 1 min (this is to stablise the air bubbles in the batter).
• Sift over the flour mixture into the batter in 3 separate additions. With each addition, use a spatula, gently Fold in the flour until well blended. Take care not to deflate the batter.
  
• Remove some batter into another mixing bowl. Add in oil, yoghurt and vanilla extra. Mix with spatula until well blended. Add this mixture to the egg and sugar batter. Fold gently with spatula until well blended.
• Pour finished batter to the prepared loaf pan. Tap the pan on work surface a few times to release any trapped air bubbles in the batter. Bake in preheated oven at 170degC for 25~30mins or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out fairly clean (do not over bake). Unmold and transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Recipe source: adapted from 我的幸福手作面包，李成实