Dark chocolate & coffee loaf

Welcome back to my kitchen!

Today, I'm excited to share with you my Dark Chocolate Coffee Cake. Growing up in Australia, I was no stranger to the ubiquitous Woolies mudcake. However, it never quite hit the mark for me. Its cloying sweetness left me feeling ill, with a claggy texture that seemed to stick to the roof of my mouth. Overall, just too sweet and overwhelming for my liking.

That's why I set out to create something different—something with a more robust, bitter flavour that left me feeling satisfied, not sick. Enter my Dark Chocolate Coffee Cake. With its rich, bitter coffee-forward flavour, this cake is a far cry from its overly saccharine counterpart, offering a more savoury cake.

Pair a slice with a dollop of cream and fresh raspberries for a luxurious dessert, or indulge in a pick-me-up alongside your afternoon coffee. Its subtle sweetness allows the true flavours of the cake to shine through.

So, let's get started!

Makes: 1 9-inch loaf -Prep time: 10 min -Cook time: 50 minutes - Serves: 8

Equipment

9x5'' loaf tin

Large bowl

Spatula

Small microwave safe bowl

Kitchen Scale

Ingredients

145g vegan butter* (see notes)

160g granulated sugar

2g salt (I use Himalayan)

6g imitation vanilla* (see notes)

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

220g oat milk

66g dutch processed cocoa powder

10g instant espresso powder

2 large eggs (52 g each, without shell)

190g plain flour

Method

Preheat your oven to 175°C fan forced (350°F). Line a 9x5 inch loaf pan with baking paper.

In a large bowl, cream together 145g butter, 160g caster sugar, 2g salt, 6g vanilla, 1 tsp baking powder, and 1/2 tsp baking soda until smooth and well combined. In a small microwave-safe bowl, heat 220g oat milk until steaming (about 1 minute 40 seconds in a 1100W microwave on high). Add 66g cocoa powder and 10g instant espresso powder to the hot milk and set aside. 

To the creamed butter mixture, add 2 large eggs, mixing well after each addition. Add half the flour (190g plain flour) and half the milk mixture, mixing well. Add the remaining flour and milk mixture, ensuring to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix until well combined. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf tin.

Bake for 45-50 minutes, checking for doneness at 45 minutes. A skewer inserted into the center should come out clean (baking time may vary; mine took 50 minutes). Let the cake stand in the tin for 10-15 minutes. Turn out the cake and place it on a cooling rack or flip the tin over and place the cake on top of it. Let it cool for 25-30 minutes. Slice into 8 pieces and enjoy!

Notes

Vegan butter: I use nuttelex buttery, to make this lactose free, but feel free to use regular butter.

Imitation vanilla: Vanilla, extract and imitation, contain a compound called vanillin, among other compounds, The vanillin is the primary compound and is the most recognizable as the flavour of vanilla and whilst both extract and imitation both contain this compound, imitation is more of a large hit of vanillin. And when we bake extract or imitation vanilla at high heat, we drive off a lot of the volatile aromas, that's why your kitchen smells great, but it can leave your baked goods lacking, so in my oven / high heat bakes I opt for imitation, but for pastry creams, whipped cream or icings I use extract, as the taste difference is far more noticable. 

I hope you enjoy it as much as I do, and if you give it a try, let me know how it turns out! Your feedback means the world to me. Happy baking!

Much love,