Sometimes, only cake will do. Here I am, watching my calorie intake, keeping a watchful eye on my fats and carbs, cycling my macros and eating enough spinach to make Popeye blush… and it strikes me that it would be an amazing idea to make cake. And so, here we are. No excuses, no faffing about – just one badass rich, dark chocolate orange cake. Eat it and be glad: yeah, it’s got carbs. Yeah, it’s got fat. Yeah, this probably won’t fit in your Shakeology meal plan… but hey, at just 3g of natural sugars per slice… that’s pretty badass in itself, right?
So? LET’S GET CHOCOLATEY.
Method
For the cakes
Preheat the oven to 160°c fan (180°c no fan, 350°f)
Add 230 g plain flour , 30 g unsweetened coca powder , 2 tsps ground coffee , 3 tsps ground cinnamon , 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda and 1 tsp baking powder into a large bowl and stir together with a metal spoon. Set aside.
Zest and juice 1 orange(s) . In another bowl, add 2 large eggs(s) . 230 g xylitol , orange juice , 100 g melted butter and 250 ml semi-skimmed milk – make sure that you have warmed up the milk for 20 seconds or so in the microwave, otherwise cold milk straight from the fridge can cool down your butter enough to harden again. Using an electric hand mixer, whisk together the ingredients on medium-high until combined and bubbles are frothing on top.
Pour the wet mixture into the bowl dry ingredients, using a silicon spatula to ensure you get all of the xylitol that may have clung to the bowl. Add the orange zest, keeping back a handful for garnish. Using a metal spoon or knife, stir together the ingredients thoroughly for at least a minute, making sure there are no dry lumps or clumps and the mixture is smooth.
Grease and line two 15cm/6″ cake tins (ideally with removable bases) with baking/parchment paper. Pour half of the mixture into each lined tin, banging each one a couple of times against the worktop to knock out any air bubbles. Note: you could feasibly bake this as one cake in a single tin, but it can be tricky to ensure that it bakes all the way through and without without drying out, so using 2 tins is usually easier.
Put both tins in the oven and bake for 45-55 minutes, checking after 35. The cake should be risen & springy. If it looks like the top or edges are browning but it’s still not baked through, carefully place a tin foil hat over the top to stop it from burning.
Once the cakes are baked, remove from the oven and leave to cool for 5 minutes. Then remove the cakes from the tins and carefully peel away the baking paper and leave to cool on a wire rack. Once cooled after 30 minutes or so, use a sharp serrated knife to remove the very top of one of the cakes, trying to make the cut as level as possible.
For the buttercream
While your cakes are baking, add 60 g softened butter and 0.125 tsp stevia into a bowl and whisk together with an handheld electric mixer for 30 seconds or so, until the butter is smooth.
Melt 40 g melted sugar-free chocolate in a small bowl or ramekin and add to the butter mixture as you mix slowly with a metal spoon or knife.
Add 8 drop natural orange oil – this is to taste, so mix it in and try a little, then add more if you want more of an orange kick. Once mixed, add 3 tsps cornflour 1 teaspoon at a time, combining thoroughly. We’re adding this because there’s no real ‘dry’ ingredients, so we need to stiffen the buttercream up a little bit. Once it’s all mixed and smooth, cover the bowl with cling film and leave in a cool place or in the fridge.
Assuming your cakes are thoroughly cooled (do not attempt this while they’re warm!), use a palette knife to evenly spread half of your buttercream over the flat top of the cake from which you removed the domed top; then use the same palette knife to evenly spead the remoaning half of your buttercream over the domed top of your other cake. Place one on top of the other, carefully sandwiching the two together.
Hide Method
Nutritional Info
Total Carbohydrates
45.4g
*Typical values per serving.
Hide Nutritional Info
