Diemersdal The Journal Pinotage is paired to perfection with rich chocolate olive oil cake. Dense, deeply chocolatey, and made for slow winter moments by the fire, this is the ultimate winter weekend indulgence.
Recipe: Chocolate olive oil cake
Prep time: 20 minutes / Cook time: 40 minutes /Serves: 6 to 8
Ingredients
- 200g plain chocolate, 70 per cent cocoa solids
- 125ml strong-flavoured extra-virgin olive oil
- 200g caster sugar
- 2 tablespoons ground almonds or hazelnuts
- 5 large eggs, separated
To serve
- Icing sugar, for dusting
- Mascarpone or crème fraiche
- Blackberry preserve (optional)
Method
Heat the oven to 160°C (no fan), then butter and line the base of a 20cm spring-form cake tin. Break the chocolate into pieces and place in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water. Stir a little to help the chocolate to melt.
Once it’s completely melted, whisk in the oil in a steady stream, then two-thirds of the sugar, whisking to help the sugar dissolve in the heat of the chocolate. Remove from the heat. Stir in the ground nuts, a pinch of flaked sea salt and the egg yolks.
Put the egg whites into a clean metal bowl with about one third of the remaining sugar. Beat with an electric whisk until the whites are no longer clear and then add another third of the sugar. Continue beating until the whites have really increased in volume, then add the rest of the sugar and beat until you have medium peaks (firm with tips that droop slightly).
Using a large metal spoon, loosen the chocolate mixture by folding in a big tablespoon of the egg whites, then fold in the rest carefully so that you don’t lose air. Scrape the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 40 minutes. Test by inserting a fine skewer into the centre of the cake. If it comes out clean, with no batter attached, the cake is ready.
Leave it to cool in the tin. It will deflate and crack a lot, but that is fine. Carefully turn it out and remove the paper. Put on to a plate and dust with icing sugar before serving. The cake is delicious with a dollop of mascarpone or crème fraiche, and a spoonful of tart blackberry preserve.
Pair your cake with Diemersdal Estate 's smooth and velvety The Journal Pinotage.