Quadruple Chocolate Loaf Cake

A deeply dark, damp loaf cake hitting four notes of chocolate, cocoa batter, chocolate chips, a chocolate syrup soak and a chocolate topping.

Ingredients

• 200g plain flour
• 0.5 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 50g cocoa powder
• 275g caster sugar
• 175g soft unsalted butter
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 80ml sour cream
• 125ml boiling water
• 100g dark chocolate chips
• For the syrup: 1 teaspoon cocoa, 125ml water, 100g caster sugar
• For the topping: 30g dark chocolate, finely chopped

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 170C/150C fan/gas mark 3 and line a 900g loaf tin with parchment.
2. Cream the butter and sugar, then beat in the eggs, vanilla and sour cream.
3. Fold in the flour, cocoa and bicarbonate of soda, then mix in the boiling water to make a loose batter and stir through the chocolate chips.
4. Pour into the tin and bake for about 1 hour until risen and a skewer comes out mostly clean.
5. Meanwhile, simmer the syrup ingredients for a few minutes until slightly thickened.
6. Prick the warm cake all over and spoon the chocolate syrup over it, letting it soak in.
7. Scatter the chopped chocolate over the warm top so it melts into a glossy finish, then cool in the tin.

Notes

Based on Nigella Lawson’s Quadruple Chocolate Loaf Cake (Feast / nigella.com).