Recipe for Chocolate Cake - Chocolate for Cake Decorating

Chocolate and cake are two words that go together so well. The combination of the two allows for many different types of cake, cakes with different textures, flavours and fillings. 

A chocolate cake is a traditional cake recipe made with chocolate from the cocoa bean. The Spanish brought cocoa powder and the cocoa bean from the Americas to Europe in the 17th century and this great synergy was born. There are many varieties of this form of cake.

Chocolate cake has evolved in style and affordability as the processes involved with the creation of chocolate have advanced. The mechanical extraction of the fat from the cocoa liquor was a big advance. Developed by Coenraad van Houten in 1828. It allowed the partly defatted cocoa ground into a powdered form to give us cocoa powder.

This manufacturing process had a dramatic effect on the costs involved in the making of chocolate and allowed more experimentation to take place as it was no longer a luxury for the few.

Until the end of the 19th Century, chocolate was mostly used for drinks, its use in cakes being reserved to the fillings of the cake or a glaze on the cake.

Next in the chain of developments that shaped the modern chocolate cake is the process called conching. Developed by Rodolphe Lindt in Berne, Switzerland, in 1879, the process took place in a vessel resembling a conch shell hence the name.

Conching involves a surface scraping mixer and an agitator to evenly distributes cocoa butter throughout the chocolate. This develops flavours as the friction produced heats and releases oils. This repetitive process also acts to "polish" the chocolate.

For the finest chocolate, the process would be repeated for up to 78 hours, which brings out a rich taste.

At the other end of the spectrum, some chocolates will be conched for as little as 5 hours. It is this process that distinguishes the different manufacturers and their ranges of chocolate. For this reason, the exact processes and ingredients are often kept as a "trade secret".

Conching advanced the quality and versatility of the chocolate cake. The consistent amalgamating of the chocolate throughout the cake batter makes for the finest cakes.

Recipe for Chocolate Cake

Simple Chocolate Cake

Let's start with an easy chocolate cake recipe from the BBC. 

Ingredients

At 35 minutes to prepare and just 20 minutes to cook this is a truly simple chocolate cake. A versatile light sponge buttercream filled cake.

Ultimate Chocolate Cake

If you are looking for a little more chocolate in your chocolate cake then this recipe is for you.

Ultimate Chocolate cake

Ingredients

Preparation 40 minutes and the cooking time 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Vegan Chocolate Cake

Chocolate is a vegan product and this delicious chocolate avocado cake is a gluten-free, vegan chocolate cake

Just 30 minutes to prepare and 25 minutes to cook this is a rich gluten-free and dairy-free cake. Suitable for so many.

Chocolate Cake Decoration Ideas

Decorating cakes comes from 17th century Europe when cakes were decorated for special occasions such as weddings or royal events. The wedding cake is the epitome of a decorated cake with wealth and position being expressed in the cake design.

Cakes became more elaborate and common with the advent of temperature-controlled ovens. It was the ability to provide a reliable and predictable temperature that released a new art form. That and the availability of baking powder. The introduction of cheaper sugar started the sugar arts, icing, frosting and the production of decorations made from edible ingredients. Chocolate cake decoration ideas started to flow and grow as chocolate cakes started to be used for special occasions, weddings, anniversaries, birthdays and religious festivals. 

Edible colouring and moulded decorations were added to the list of tools available to the baker in the art of decorating the cake.

Modelling Chocolate

Modelling chocolate is a chocolate paste formed by melting chocolate and adding either corn, glucose, or golden syrup. The resulting chocolate paste can then be formed into different shapes. Modelling chocolate allows colour as well as shape to be brought into the equation with dark chocolate, white chocolate and milk chocolate all being available to add colour and shades to the decorator's tools.

Flowers are one of the most popular decorations added to chocolate cakes but the themes and ideas are limitless.

I find inspiration can come from seeing how others interpret the craft of cake decorating. Pinterest is an ideal platform for getting such inspiration.

Below are a selection I enjoyed looking through, I hope you do as well.

Chocolate Cake Decoration

https://www.pinterest.co.uk/iffatsultana/chocolate-cake-decoration/

Chocolate decorated cakes

https://www.pinterest.co.uk/bettyatkin/chocolate-decorated-cakes/

Chocolate (Cakes&Decorations) 

https://www.pinterest.co.uk/radilica86/chocolate-cakesdecorations/

Chocolate birthday cake

https://www.pinterest.co.uk/kareneshipley/chocolate-birthday-cake/

Chocolate Cake with Strawberries

Italian strawberry and chocolate chunk cake from the BBC. 

Ingredients

4 free-range eggs
175g/6oz extra virgin coconut oil or unsalted butter
200ml/7fl oz honey or maple syrup
150g/5½oz ground almonds
150g/5½oz white spelt flour
½ unwaxed lemon, zest only
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp fine sea salt
150g/5½oz dark chocolate (minimum 70% cocoa solids), broken into large chunks
250g/9oz strawberries, hulled and halved

I had to read the title twice the first time I saw this recipe. It is an Italian cake recipe with chocolate and strawberries not Italian strawberries in a chocolate cake!

Preparation time under 30 minutes, cooking time is 1 to 2 hours.

A chocolate cake packed with strawberries

Preparation time, 30 minutes to an hour, cooking time 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Chocolate Cake for Christmas

Christmas is a time many think of as being chocolate, chocolate and chocolate. 

There are so many chocolate cake for Christmas ideas, be it mulled wine brownies, yule logs or a revision of the traditional Christmas pudding. Chocolate and cherry Christmas pudding. Then after dinner, Christmas truffles.

Here are a host of Christmas Chocolate recipes.

Perfect as a chocolate Christmas cake is this amazing and very morish dark, moist, chocolate Christmas cake from Nigella Lawson

30 minutes to the hour to prepare and 1 to 2 hours to cook

Chocolate Cake Easter

If there is one festival that tops Christmas for overindulgence on chocolate that's Easter. Whether the Easter eggs hidden in the egg search or the large decorated chocolate eggs are exchanged as gifts that have, yes, yet more chocolate inside.

So any chocolate cake for Easter has to be particularly impressive to compete.

I think this Easter nest cake is the ultimate chocolate cake for Easter.

Preparation time 45 minutes, cooking time 30 minutes

Recipe for Chocolate Loaf Cake

A loaf cake is a cake made in a loaf tin. Often referred to as a pound cake which is a cake made from a pound of each ingredient: flour, butter, eggs, sugar. Dating back to the early 1700s the load cake has many variations.

If you are going to make a chocolate loaf cake then why not make it a double chocolate loaf cake!

Ingredients

175g softened butter, plus extra for greasing
175g golden caster sugar
3 eggs
140g self-raising flour
85g ground almonds
½ tsp baking powder
100ml milk
4 tbsp cocoa powder
50g plain chocolate chip or chunks
few extra chunks of white, plain and milk chocolate, for decorating

Preparation time 25 minutes and cooking time 55 minutes.

Recipe for Chocolate Ganache Cake

Ganache is a glazing, icing sauce or filling used in and on cakes made from chocolate and cream. You would heat equal parts by weight of cream and chopped chocolate, warming the cream first, then pouring it over the chocolate to melt it. Leave for a few minutes to let the heat of the cream melt all the chocolate then stir and blend the mixture. To give the ganache a shiny appearance and smooth texture butter can also be added after the chocolate has melted into the mixture.

In 1863 Paul Siraudin, a confectioner and playwright came up with the idea and named it after another play "Les Ganaches" It started life as a kind of truffle and Ganache or crème ganache was later used on cakes as a decoration of filling.

As our ultimate chocolate cake is a ganache cake I thought the link to a plain ganache would be useful

Chocolate ganache

Ingredients

200g dark chocolate, roughly chopped
300ml double cream
2 tbsp golden caster sugar

Preparation time is just 5 minutes and cooking time is another 5 minutes.

Recipe for Chocolate Guinness cake

Stout cakes are very popular and a particular famous stout is the basis of this particular cake.

Using stout gives it a very distinct deep flavour with a balance between the Guinness and the sugar and cocoa. It also makes the cake very moist which offsets the dryness of the chocolate.

Altogether a great combination.

Improved Chocolate Guinness Cake

Preparation time 30 minutes, cooking time 40 minutes.

This has been a fun trip through my favourite Chocolate cakes. I really enjoy dark chocolate and that is reflected in my choices but there are so many variations on chocolate and cake that you can never run out of ideas.