delvious

Unsuspecting visitors might think my kitchen is a part time science lab.  I’m maintaining two bread starters right now:

• The half whole wheat/white starter described in the Tartine Bread cookbook.  This one has been sitting at room temperature on top of my fridge for two weeks now and requires daily feedings (of flour and water), but I just baked my first loaf of Tartine’s basic country loaf from the 30ish page recipe and every effort is SO worth it.
• King Arthur Flour’s sourdough starter.  After rehydrating the suspicious goo, this starter stays in the fridge and needs to be fed weekly.  I was not too impressed with the loaf of sourdough I baked from King Arthur’s recipe, but I’ve been wowed but the starter’s other applications – sourdough waffles, pancakes,  pizza crust and the sourdough chocolate cake you see here.

If you don’t have a starter yet, this recipe alone justifies having one.  The cake was not sour at all; the starter adds some background complexity and helped it rise to an impressive volume in the oven.  Taste and texture-wise, the cake reminded me of a moist chocolate cake doughnut – a totally good thing,

Recipe

The downside to the recipe is that it requires some advance planning, but such is the case with any recipe involving a starter.  It’s otherwise quick to stir together and get into the oven.  For an extra kick of chocolate, I used a mixture of regular and black cocoa powder.  Your eyes are not deceiving you as this cake comes out a very dark brown, almost black.

I halved the original cake recipe and made only a quarter recipe of the espresso icing.  I’m not sure if it was the buttermilk or the King Arthur espresso powder, but the icing didn’t do the cake justice.  (In case you haven’t noticed yet, I recently ordered a whole bunch of specialty supplies from King Arthur.  They are all optional/substitute-able, but it sure is fun shopping for them online.)





Thinking in that chocolate doughnut direction, I’m going to mix up a simple vanilla sugar glaze next time (probably by substituting the lemon juice in this recipe with milk and a few drops of vanilla extract).  On second thought, a fudgy, chocolate frosting would be amazing too.  Heck, even a simple dusting of powdered sugar would do the trick.  Whatever you do, don’t wait for this cake to cool.  Cut yourself a generous slice, pour a tall glass of cold milk, and enjoy!

Sourdough Chocolate Cake with Espresso Icing

Adapted from King Arthur Flour

Active time + Wait Time + Bake time = 20 min + 2 hours + 40 min

Serves 9-12

Cake Ingredients

1/2 cup fed sourdough starter

1/2 cup milk or evaporated milk

1 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup white sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 tsp baking soda

6 tbsp natural cocoa powder (not Dutch process)

1/2 tsp espresso powder

1 egg

Glaze Ingredients

2 cups powdered sugar

3 tbsp unsalted butter

2 tbsp buttermilk

1 tsp espresso powder

1 tsp hot water

Chocolate Drizzle Ingredients

1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 tbsp milk

1/2 tbsp corn syrup

Directions

1.  Make the cake: Combine the fed starter, milk and flour in a large mixing bowl.  Cover with a clean dishtowel and let rest at room temperature for 2 to 3 hours.  It may not bubble, but it might expand a bit.
2.  Preheat the oven to 350F and lightly grease a 9×9 baking pan.
3.  In a medium bowl, beat together the sugar, oil, vanilla, salt, baking soda, cocoa and espresso powder.  The mixture will be grainy.  Add the egg and beat well.
4.  Gently combine the chocolate mixture with the starter-flour-milk mixture, stirring til smooth.  The batter will be gloppy at first, but it will smooth out with continued stirring.
5.  Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 30-40 minutes.  The cake will spring back when pushed at the center, and a toothpick inserted into the middle should come out clean.  Cool on a wire rack.
6.  Make the espresso glaze: Sift the powdered sugar into a medium bowl. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and add the buttermilk. Dissolve the espresso powder in the hot water, add it to the saucepan, and bring the mixture just to a boil.
7. Immediately pour the simmering liquid over the powdered sugar in the bowl, and beat until smooth.
8. Pour the warm glaze over the cake.
9. Make the chocolate drizzle: Combine the chocolate chips, milk, and corn syrup in a small, microwave-safe bowl. Microwave 20 seconds at a time, until chips soften, and stir until smooth.
10. Drizzle the chocolate over the iced cake.

In: Cake | tags: chocolate, cocoa, espresso, sourdough. | #