Friday 3 February 2017

Texas Chocolate Sheet Cake.



Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

It's cake time!
Today, I'm sharing this easy recipe for a Texas chocolate sheet cake.
A sheet cake just refers to the tin that this cake is baked in. I always bake mine in one of these tins which I love. I have two of them and I highly recommend them to you. We've had them for a while and they're great for everything from roasting chicken and vegetables to baking cakes.
The cake itself comes together so easily. You can make it with just a bowl and a whisk. It's quite a liquid batter but still bakes up in 25 minutes. And, the icing! I had to include a shot of the icing!
Again, it's such an easy recipe. It's a cooked icing where we melt together butter, double cream and cocoa powder. Then, away from the heat, we whisk in icing sugar to give us the smoothest, glossiest chocolate icing ever.
This cake is a cross between a cake and a brownie. Some of the middle bits, like the piece above, have that brownie-like squidgyness about them. I like to finish my cake with chopped nuts to give it a bit of crunch. This time, I went with pecans but walnuts or almonds would be good too. And, if you're not into the whole nut thing, leave the cake as it is or cover in sprinkles. I've never met a single person who doesn't like sprinkles!

Chocolate Cake, previously: the chocolate cake // eggless chocolate cake // chocolate fudge cake // heavenly chocolate cake

A Simple List of Ingredients:

For the Cake:
1. Plain Flour
2. Caster Sugar
3. Bicarbonate of Soda
4. Ground Cinnamon
5. Salt
6. Unsalted Butter
7. Cocoa Powder
8. Water
9. Buttermilk
10. Vanilla Essence
11. Eggs

For the Topping:

1. Unsalted Butter
2. Cocoa Powder
3. Double Cream
4. Vanilla Essence
5. Icing Sugar
6. Pecans

Bismillah, let's begin!

As always, we start by turning on the oven. Pre-heat the oven to 190C.

Take a rectangle cake tin measuring 33cm x 22cm x 5cm (9 inches x 13 inches). I have two of these tins and love them! You can get the same one here.

Grease and line the tin with baking paper. Make sure the paper is overhanging - this will make pulling the cake out of the tin so much easier.

The best thing about this cake batter is that it can be made in a large bowl and mixed by hand.

So, into a large mixing bowl, place 290g Plain Flour.

Along with 420g Caster Sugar.

Next, take:
1 teaspoon Bicarbonate of Soda
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon

I sieved these into the bowl because they were all a little lumpy.

Whisk together and set aside until needed.


Next, let's work on the wet ingredients.


Place 240g Unsalted Butter into a saucepan.


Let the butter completely melt over a low heat.


Then, throw in 30g Cocoa Powder.


And, pour in 210ml Water. This may seem weird but trust me, everything will turn out delicious.


Whisk everything together and let it bubble over a medium heat for 1 minute.


Remove from the heat.


And, pour into the flour bowl.


Again, it will seem weird, pouring this hot liquid into the flour, but do it!


Stir everything with a spatula or whisk until well combined.


Then, pour in 130ml Buttermilk. I like to make my own by stirring together equal parts of yoghurt and water.


Stir it in.


Then, add in 1 teaspoon Vanilla Essence.


And, crack in 2 large Eggs, at room temperature.


Whisk everything together until just combined.

And, the batter is done. It will be very liquidy at this point.

Pour the batter into the prepared tin.


Bake for 25 minutes at 190C. You'll know it's done when a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.


Once baked, let it cool for 15 minutes.

While the cake cools, let's make the chocolate icing.


Into a saucepan, place 180g Unsalted Butter, cubed.


Add 30g Cocoa Powder, sifted.


And, 80ml Double Cream.

Place the pan over a medium heat and bring to the boil.


Stir every now and then.

Once boiled, remove from the heat.


Add in 2 teaspoons Vanilla Essence.


And, 280g Icing Sugar, sifted. The icing sugar, once whisked in, will make the icing really smooth.


Like this! Guys, this icing is so good!! Please make sure that you try it before it goes onto the cake.

Speaking of cake, ours should be cooler by now.


Pour on the icing and evenly spread over the cake. I iced my cake whilst it was still in the tin but you make take it out, if you prefer.


This cake is delicious as it is but for a little crunch, I took 110g Pecans.


I gave them a rough chop and sprinkled over the cake. You may also use sprinkles, as I've done in the past.

Let the icing set before slicing up.


I left my cake overnight and as always, some of us couldn't resist sneaking a try!


Once sliced, enjoy!


I love this cake because of how easy it is to make. You can literally make it in a bowl with a whisk. Plus it feeds a crowd, can easily be halved and keeps really well. You have to give it a go!

Texas Chocolate Sheet Cake.

Prep Time: About 20 minutes + time for cake to cool.
Bake Time: About 25 minutes.
Serves: Cuts into 20 medium squares.

Ingredients

For the Cake
290g Plain Flour
420g Caster Sugar
1 teaspoon Bicarbonate of Soda
1/2 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon Salt
240g Unsalted Butter
30g Cocoa Powder
210ml Water
130ml Buttermilk
1 teaspoon Vanilla Essence
2 large Eggs, at room temperature

For the Icing
180g Unsalted Butter, cubed
30g Cocoa Powder, sifted
80ml Double Cream
2 teaspoons Vanilla Essence
280g Icing Sugar, sifted

To Finish
110g Pecans, roughly chopped 

Before baking:
Pre-heat the oven to 190C. Grease and line a 33cm x 22cm x 5cm (9 inches x 13 inches) rectangle cake tin. Make sure the baking paper is overhanging over the sides - this will make pulling the cake out of the tin so much easier.

Make the cake batter:
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt and bicarbonate of soda. You may sift them in, if they're very lumpy.

Melt the butter in a saucepan over a low heat. Add in the cocoa powder and water. Whisk together and let everything bubble over a medium heat for 1 minute.

Pour this mixture into the flour bowl and stir until well combined. Stir in the buttermilk. Then, whisk in the vanilla essence and eggs. The batter will be very liquid.

Bake the cake:
Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.  Let the cake cool for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the icing:
Place the butter, cocoa powder and double cream into a saucepan. Bring them to a boil, stirring every now and then. Remove from the heat and whisk in the vanilla and icing sugar. Let it cool down for a few minutes.

Finish the cake:
I iced the cake whilst it was still in the tin. You make take it out, if you prefer. Pour the icing over the cake and spread until even. Sprinkle over the chopped pecans and let the cake cool before serving.

{adapted from martha}

This Time One Year Ago:
Umrah 2016!

This Time Two Years Ago:
chicken kofta curry.

This Time Three Years Ago:
cheesy broccoli soup.

This Time Four Years Ago:
extra smooth and creamy mashed potatoes.

Keep me in your duas please, and enjoy your chocolate cake!

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!


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