Cocoa Cake with Strawberries and Chocolate Cereal Flakes

        

                         

   

It looks attractive, doesn't it? How else could it be when the combination of fresh strawberries, cocoa and heavy cream is so irresistible? Well, it's the last cocoa cake I made decorated with strawberries and all those chocolate cereal flakes. The final touch came when I remembered to dust some powdered sugar over it. What an effect! It looks as if it's snowed over a strawberry field! 

The recipe below for the cake itself is from BBC Food and the one for the cream is from Martha Stewart. Bon appetite!

~ Ingredients ~

For the cake

225 g flour

350 g caster sugar

85 g cocoa powder

1½ tsp baking powder

1½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

 2 free-range eggs

250 ml milk

125 ml vegetable oil

2 tsp vanilla extract

250 ml boiling water

Fresh Strawberries

Powdered sugar

For the whipped cream

1 cup heavy cream

1-2 tbsp granulated sugar or confectioners' sugar

 

Preparation method

For the cake

1. Preheat the oven to 180C.
2. Grease and line two 20cmX12.5cm cake tins. 
3. For the cake, place all of the cake ingredients, except the boiling water, into a large mixing bowl. Using a wooden spoon, or electric whisk, beat the mixture until smooth and well combined. 
4. Add the boiling water to the mixture, a little at a time, until smooth. (The cake mixture will now be very liquid.)
5. Divide the cake batter between the tins and bake in the oven for 25-35 minutes, or until the top is firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
6. Remove the cakes from the oven and allow to cool completely, still in their tins, before decorating.

For the cream

7. In a deep mixing bowl, beat the heavy cream until soft peaks form.
8. Sprinkle the sugar over cream; beat until soft peaks return. Do not overbeat. Keep it in the refrigerator until the cakes are cool enough to assemble.

To assemble the cake

 9. Run a round-bladed knife around the inside of the cake tins to loosen the cakes. Carefully remove the cakes from the tins.
10. Split the cakes into two layers. 
 11. Spread some cream over the top of one of the chocolate cakes. 
12. Slice the strawberries into two halves.
13. Place the strawberries on the creamed cakes and then carefully top with the other cakes.
14. Transfer the cakes to serving plates. 
15. Spread some cream over the top.
16. Decorate with the rest of the strawberries and chocolate cereal flakes.
17. Dust with powdered sugar.