Nigella Lawson Chocolate Cake

Nigella Lawson’s chocolate cake with coffee buttercream is a moist, fudgy two-layer chocolate sponge, deepened with espresso and sandwiched and topped with a smooth coffee buttercream. It cuts into 8 to 12 slices, from her book At My Table.

She calls it reassuringly easy and very popular in her house, needing nothing more taxing than beating wet ingredients into dry, a bowl-and-wooden-spoon number. No creaming, no fuss, just mix and bake.

The espresso is the clever touch. Instant espresso powder in both the sponge and the buttercream deepens the chocolate, giving a rich mocha flavour rather than tasting strongly of coffee, and the just-boiled water in the batter blooms the cocoa for an intense result.

Nigella Lawson Chocolate Cake

Recipe by Pinch Perfect

5.0 from 1 vote

Course: DessertCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Easy

Servings

8-12

servings

Prep time

20

minutes

Cooking time

25

minutes

Calories

580

kcal

Total time

55

minutes

Nigella’s easy mix-and-bake cake from At My Table: a moist, fudgy espresso-deepened chocolate sponge, filled and swirled with smooth coffee buttercream and finished with chocolate coffee beans. Cuts into 8 to 12.

Ingredients

• For the cake:

• 225g plain flour

• 275g caster sugar

• 75g cocoa (sieved if lumpy)

• 2 teaspoons instant espresso powder

• 2 teaspoons baking powder

• 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

• 175ml full-fat milk (at room temperature)

• 175ml vegetable oil (plus more for greasing)

• 2 large eggs (at room temperature)

• For the icing:

• 350g icing sugar

• 175g soft unsalted butter

• 2½ teaspoons instant espresso powder (dissolved in 1 x 15ml tablespoon just-boiled water)

• To decorate:

• chocolate-coated coffee beans (optional)

prime30 days freeMissing an ingredient?✓ Free fast delivery   ✓ Cancel anytimeTry Prime freeUnderlined ingredients link to Amazon UK. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Directions

• Prep the tins:Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F. Grease the sides and line the bases of 2 x 20cm sandwich tins, and do not use loose-bottomed ones, as this is a very liquid batter.
• Mix the dry:Fork together the flour, sugar, cocoa, 2 teaspoons espresso powder, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda in a large batter jug or bowl.
• Make the batter:Whisk the milk, oil and eggs in another jug. Pour the wet into the dry and beat with a wooden spoon to a smooth, fudgily thick mixture. Gently beat in 250ml just-boiled water, scraping the bottom well, until smooth, dark, glossy and fairly runny. Pour equally into the tins.
• Bake:Bake for 25 to 35 minutes (start checking at 20), until coming away from the edges, firm on top and a tester comes out all but clean. A few cracks are fine.
• Cool:Stand in the tins on a rack for 15 minutes, then unmould gently and peel off the lining, carefully, as these are tender sponges. Cool completely before icing.
• Make the buttercream:Pulse the icing sugar in a processor to remove lumps, add the butter and blitz, scraping down. With the motor running, pour the dissolved coffee down the funnel. Scrape down and combine well.
• Assemble:Sit the thicker cake flat-side up, spread with about half the buttercream, and sandwich with the other cake top-side up. Pile the rest on top and swirl over with a small cranked spatula. Decorate with chocolate coffee beans.

Notes

• (by hand): You don’t need a processor for the buttercream. If making it by hand, sieve the icing sugar and beat with the butter until soft, then gently stir in the hot coffee for a smooth, buff-coloured icing.
• (make ahead): Bake the layers 1 day ahead; cool, wrap in cling film and store airtight, filling and frosting before serving. The buttercream keeps up to 1 week in an airtight container in the fridge; bring to room temperature until spreadable. Iced-cake leftovers keep up to 5 days in an airtight container in a cool place.
• (freeze): Wrap un-iced layers in a double layer of foil and freeze for up to 3 months; defrost unwrapped on a wire rack at room temperature for 2 to 3 hours. The buttercream also freezes for up to 3 months; defrost for several hours at room temperature until spreadable.

FAQs

Why must I not use loose-bottomed tins?

This is Nigella’s firmest instruction, and ignoring it means disaster. The finished batter is very liquid, almost pourable, after the just-boiled water goes in, so a loose-bottomed tin would simply let it seep out through the base and all over your oven before it has a chance to set.

Use solid, fixed-base sandwich tins, well greased and with lined bases. The runny batter is exactly what gives the cake its lovely moist, tender, fudgy crumb once baked, so don’t be tempted to thicken it. Just make sure your tins hold liquid.

Why add just-boiled water to the batter?

The boiling water does two things. It blooms the cocoa, intensifying the chocolate flavour and dissolving it fully for a smoother, richer crumb, and it thins the batter to that pourable consistency that bakes into an exceptionally moist, tender sponge.

Add it last, gently, scraping the bottom of the jug or bowl well so no dry pockets lurk underneath. The batter will look alarmingly runny and glossy, but that’s exactly right. It’s the same bloom-the-cocoa trick behind many of the best moist chocolate cakes.

Does it taste strongly of coffee?

No, and that’s the point of the espresso. Instant espresso powder in both the sponge and the buttercream deepens and enriches the chocolate flavour, giving a rounded, grown-up mocha note rather than making the cake taste like a cup of coffee. The coffee and chocolate flatter each other.

If you prefer, or you’re baking for children, you can leave the espresso out of the cake and the buttercream entirely for a plain chocolate cake, and it still works. Or use a little more for a stronger coffee hit. The chocolate coffee beans on top play up the mocha theme.

How do I make the buttercream smooth without a processor?

Nigella uses a food processor mainly to avoid sieving the icing sugar, which she loathes. If you’re making it by hand, simply sieve the icing sugar first to remove any lumps, beat it with the soft butter until pale and soft, then gently stir in the hot dissolved coffee for a smooth, buff-coloured icing.

Have the butter properly soft so it beats smooth, and add the coffee while it’s still hot so it blends in evenly. Don’t add too much liquid, or the buttercream goes runny and won’t hold its swirls. Either method gives the same silky, coffee-flecked finish.

How do I know the cakes are baked, and how do I handle them?

They’re done at 25 to 35 minutes (start checking at 20) when they come away from the edges of the tin, feel firm on top and a tester comes out all but clean. A few cracks on top are nothing to worry about, since they’ll be hidden by the buttercream anyway.

These are tender, moist sponges, so handle them gently: cool them in the tins for 15 minutes first, then unmould and peel the lining carefully so they don’t tear. Let them cool completely before icing, or the warm cake will melt the buttercream. It’s a more forgiving bake than her toasted marshmallow and rhubarb cake.

Can I make it ahead, store or freeze it?

It’s very make-ahead friendly. Bake the layers up to a day ahead, wrapped and stored airtight, and the buttercream up to a week ahead in the fridge (bring it back to room temperature to spread). Fill and frost before serving. Iced leftovers keep up to 5 days in a cool place.

The un-iced layers also freeze for up to 3 months, double-wrapped in foil, defrosted on a rack at room temperature, and the buttercream freezes too. So you can make the whole thing in stages. For a chocolate pudding rather than a cake, Nigella’s chocolate olive oil mousse is another option, and there’s more on the Nigella Lawson recipes page.