Red wine chocolate cake

Ingredients

• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 2 cups plain flour
• ½ cup cocoa powder
• 1 tsp bicarb soda
• 1½ tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp sea salt, plus a pinch to garnish
• ½ cup roughly chopped dark chocolate, melted (55% cocoa)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 eggs, whisked
• 250 ml (1 cup) red wine
• 250 ml (1 cup) buttermilk
• 185 ml (¾ cup) vegetable oil
• blackberries, to serve

For the buttercream

• 170 g unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 cups icing sugar, sifted
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• ½ cup powdered drinking chocolate (sweet cocoa powder)
• 3-5 tbsp red wine

Resting time: 45 minutes

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180˚C. Grease and line two round 20 cm cake tins.
2. Into a large mixing bowl, sift the sugars, flour, cocoa powder, bicarb soda, baking soda and salt and mix well to combine.
3. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and add melted chocolate, vanilla, eggs, wine, buttermilk, oil and beat until incorporated. Divide the cake batter evenly among baking pans.
4. Bake for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Allow to cool completely.
5. While the cake cools, prepare the buttercream by beating the butter in a large bowl until pale and fluffy, slowly adding in the icing sugar, and then combining the remaining ingredients. Add wine one spoonful at a time until desired buttercream consistency is reached.
6. To assemble, spread half of the buttercream over one cake, then place the other on top, adding another layer of buttercream. Sprinkle the top with sea salt flakes and arrange blackberries on top before serving.

Photography by Kitti Gould.

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