Double chocolate and raspberry cake

 

INGREDIENTS:

200g self-raising flour

25g cocoa

1 teaspoon baking powder

225g butter, at room temperature, plus a little extra for greasing

225g caster sugar

4 eggs

**Filling

200g white chocolate

300ml double cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

300g fresh raspberries

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 160°C/Gas Mark 3.

Sift the flour, cocoa and baking powder into a bowl. Cream the butter and sugar together in a mixing bowl with anelectric mixer until pale and fluffy.

Beat in 1 egg then a spoonful of the flour mix. Continue adding eggs and flour alternately until it has all been added and the mixture is smooth.

Spoon into a buttered 23 cm (9 inch) tin that has been lined in the base with a circle of greaseproof or non-stick baking paper. Smooth the top of the cake so it's level then bake for 35-40 minutes or until the top feels firm and a skewer comes out cleanly when inserted into the centre of the cake.

Leave to cool in the tin for 15 minutes then loosen the edge and remove the springclip side. Loosen the base and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Meanwhile unwrap and soften the block of white chocolate in the microwave on full power for 10 seconds.  With the flat side of the block of white chocolate facing upwards, shave off chocolate curls by running a swivel-bladed vegetable peeler over the top. If the curls are very tiny, microwave the chocolate once more then try again. Chill the curls.

When the cake is cold, break the remaining chocolate into pieces and melt in a bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water. 

Whip the cream in a second bowl then fold in two thirds of the melted chocolate and the vanilla. Peel the lining paper from the cake then cut into two layers, put one of the layers on a serving plate, spoon over half the cream then sprinkle with half the raspberries. Add the other cake half and repeat the layers. 

Drizzle the remaining melted chocolate from a spoon in zigzag lines over the top of the cake and finish with the chilled chocolate curls. Cut into slices to serve.