Chocolate-Coffee Volcano

For my Dads birthday I decided to make him this impressive sounding Chocolate-Coffee Volcano from Nigella Lawson’s Domestic Goddess – my first recipe from the book. The thing I liked about this recipe was that I could make the cake & prepare the cream & have it sitting & waiting just to throw together at the last minute. Also I used Kahlua instead of Tia Maria as that’s what I had in the bar! The cake was very moist & very chocolatey due to all of the cocoa, great tasting cake. The addition of the walnuts, crème, & caramelised sugar brought it up another level & made it that bit more special. As for the ‘look’, well I think I missed the volcano effect a bit as when I put the crème in the middle straight from the fridge there was no running over the edges like molten lava so mine was just a volcano on the brink! I think this is a great combination of flavours & everyone who had a piece loved it.

Chocolate-Coffee Volcano

Cake
300g Caster sugar
140g plain flour, sifted
80g cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
¼ teaspoon salt
4 large eggs, separated, plus 2 more egg whites (from the yolks you need for the café cream)
125ml vegetable oil
125ml water
1 teaspoon vamilla extract
25cm bundt tin, oiled

Café Cream
225ml double cream
6 large egg yolks
3 tablespoons light muscovado sugar
1 tablespoon instant espresso powder

Topping
4 tablespoons Tia Maria or rum (or Kahlua)
125g chopped walnuts
4 tablespoons Demerara sugar
Chef’s kitchen blowtorch

If making to serve right away then make the custard first so it has a good chance to cool before use. Warm the cream gently in a saucepan. Mix the egg yolks, sugar & espresso powder together in a bowl & pour the warm cream over this mixture, whisking to combine/ Pour the mixture back into the now rinsed out pan & cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until it thickens. Pour into a bowl & leave to cool.

Now for the cake. Preheat oven to 180c. In a large bowl mix together 200g of the caster sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, bicarb & salt. In a measuring jug, whisk together the yolks, oil, water & vanilla. Pour over the dry ingredients gradually, beating to combine.

In another bowl, whisk the 6 egg whites until they are foamy & forming soft peaks. Add the remaining caster sugar, a spoonful at a time, still whisking until the whies are thick & shiny & hold their shape. Briskly beat a large dollop of whites into the cake mixture to lighten it, then a third at a time, fold in the remaining whites.

Pour the mixture into the oiled tin & bake for 40 minutes, the cake should then be springy & coming away from the sides. Let the cake cool in its tin on a rack for 25 minutes before turning out.

Sprinkle the Kahlua onto the cake 1 teaspoon at a time, letting the liqueur soak in after each spoon full.

When ready to serve, place the cake on a plate with a lip & fill the centre with walnuts. Pour in the cold custard letting it overflow a bit onto the shoulders & over the sides. Sprinkle the Demerara sugar, a little at a time, so that it doesn’t soak in, on top of the cake, & use a blowtorch to caramelise the top.