Mary Berry Chocolate Sponge Cake Recipes

MARY'S CHOCOLATE CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4. Lightly butter two loose-bottomed 20cm/8in sandwich tins and line the bases with baking paper.
• Put the butter, sugar, eggs, flour, baking powder and cocoa in a large bowl and beat for 2 minutes, or until just blended. (An electric mixer is best for this, but you can also beat by hand using a wooden spoon.)
• Divide the mixture evenly between the tins. Level the surface using a spatula or the back of a spoon.
• Bake for 25-30 minutes. The tops of the cakes should spring back when pressed lightly with a finger. Leave the cakes to cool in the tins for 5 minutes. Run a small palette knife around the edge of the tins, then carefully turn the cakes out onto a wire rack. Peel off the paper and leave to cool completely.
• Choose the cake with the best top, then put the other cake top-down onto a serving plate. Spread with the jam and whipped cream, put the other cake on top (top upwards) and sprinkle with caster sugar to serve.

MARY BERRY'S EASY VICTORIA SANDWICH

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4. Grease and line two 20cm/8in sandwich tins. Use a piece of baking paper to rub a little butter around the inside of the tins until the sides and base are lightly coated, then line the bottom with a circle of baking paper.
• Break the eggs into a large mixing bowl, then add the sugar, flour, baking powder and butter. Mix together until well combined with an electric hand mixer (you can also use a wooden spoon), but be careful not to over mix. Put a damp cloth under your bowl when you're mixing to stop it moving around. The finished mixture should fall off a spoon easily.
• Divide the mixture evenly between the tins: this doesn't need to be exact, but you can weigh the filled tins if you want to check. Use a spatula to remove all of the mixture from the bowl and gently smooth the surface of the cakes.
• Bake the cakes on the middle shelf of the oven for 25 minutes. Check them after 20 minutes. The cakes are done when they're golden-brown and coming away from the edge of the tins. Press them gently to check - they should be springy to the touch. Set aside to cool in their tins for 5 minutes. Run a palette or rounded butter knife around the inside edge of the tins and carefully turn the cakes out onto a cooling rack.
• To assemble the cake, place one cake upside down onto a plate and spread it with plenty of jam. If you want to, you can spread over whipped cream too. Top with the second cake, top-side up. Sprinkle over the caster sugar.

MARY BERRY'S CHOCOLATE CAKE RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 180C, gas 4. Beat together the eggs, flour, caster sugar, butter, and baking powder until smooth in a large mixing bowl.
• Put the cocoa powder in a separate mixing bowl, and add the water a little at a time to make a stiff paste. Add to the cake mixture.
• Turn into the prepared tins, level the top, and bake in the preheated oven for about 20-25 mins, or until shrinking away from the sides of the tin and springy to the touch.
• Leave to cool in the tin, then turn on to a wire rack to become completely cold before icing.
• To make the icing: measure the cream and chocolate into a bowl and carefully melt over a pan of hot water over a low heat, or gently in the microwave for 1 min (600w microwave). Stir until melted, then set aside to cool a little and to thicken up.
• To ice the cake: spread the apricot jam on the top of each cake. Spread half of the ganache icing on the top of the jam on one of the cakes, then lay the other cake on top, sandwiching them together.
• Use the remaining ganache icing to ice the top of the cake in a swirl pattern. Dust with icing sugar to serve.

CHOCOLATE SPONGE CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4 and grease and line two 20cm/8in sandwich tins with baking parchment.
• Put the cocoa powder and boiling water into a large bowl and mix well to make a paste. Add the remaining ingredients and beat again until combined. This can also be done in a food processor, but take care not to over whisk. Divide the cake mixture between the prepared tins. Bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until well risen and shrinking away from the sides of the tin.
• Meanwhile, for the icing and filling, measure the chocolate and cream together in a bowl and stand the bowl over a pan of simmering water for about 10 minutes, or until melted. Stir from time to time. Set aside and leave until cool.
• Once baked, remove the cakes from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before turning out the tins onto a wire rack to cool completely.
• Spread the tops of each cake with apricot jam. Fill the cakes with half of the icing and spread the remainder on top. Draw large "S" shapes over the cake with a palatte knife to give a swirl effect. Dust with icing sugar and serve in slices.

MARY BERRY'S MADEIRA CAKE

Steps:

• Add the butter and sugar to a large bowl and use an electric mixer to beat everything well until creamy.
• Add the eggs one by one, beating well after each addition.
• In go the flour and ground almonds together with the lemon zest.
• Mix everything well to get a smooth thick batter.
• Grease and flour a 23 cm/9 inch round cake tin, and spread the batter evenly.
• Bake in the preheated oven at 180 degrees Celsius (350 Fahrenheit) for 30 minutes or until golden and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
• Leave to cool for 15 minutes, then carefully remove from the cake tin, and transfer to a cooling rack to be cooled down completely.

CHOCOLATE AND VANILLA MARBLE LOAF

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 160°C/Fan 140°C/gas 3. Lightly grease a 900g loaf tin and line with a wide strip of non-stick baking parchment to go up the wide sides and over the base of the tin. Measure the butter, sugar, flour, baking powder, eggs, milk and vanilla extract into a large bowl and beat with a hand-held electric mixer for about 2 minutes, until well blended. Spoon half the mixture into another bowl and set aside. In a small bowl, mix the cocoa powder and hot water together until smooth. Allow to cool slightly, then add to one of the bowls of cake mixture, mixing well until evenly blended. Spoon the vanilla and chocolate cake mixtures randomly into the prepared tin until all of the mixture is used up, and gently level the surface. Bake for 50 minutes-1 hour, until the cake is well risen, springy to the touch and beginning to shrink away from the sides of the tin. Allow to cool in the tin for a few minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack, peel off the lining paper and leave to cool completely. To make the icing, melt the butter in a small pan, add the cocoa powder, stir to blend and cook gently for 1 minute. Stir in the milk and icing sugar, then remove from the heat and mix thoroughly. If necessary, leave the icing on one side, stirring occasionally, to thicken. Spread the cold cake evenly with the icing, then drizzle the melted white chocolate over the top. Leave to set.

MARY BERRY'S CHOCOLATE STEAMED PUDDING WITH CHOCOLATE SAUCE

Steps:

• 1. Grease it with baking spread, then cut a small square of baking paper (about the size of the base of the bowl), grease it and place in the base of the basin, pressing it into the corners. 2. Measure all the pudding ingredients into a mixing bowl. Whisk with an electric hand whisk until well blended, light and fluffy. Spoon the mixture into the basin and level the top. 3. Cut a square of foil about 4cm (1½in) bigger than the top rim of the pudding and grease the underside with butter. Make a pleat in the middle of the square. Place it on top of the basin and tightly press around the edges, then tie with string to seal. 4. Put a small plate or a trivet in the base of a deep saucepan. Place the basin on top and pour in enough boiling water to come halfway up the sides and cover with a lid. Bring the water back to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer very gently for 1½-1¾ hours until firm to touch on top when gently pressed. 5. To make the chocolate sauce, measure the milk and cream into a saucepan. Heat until just boiling, then add the chocolate and vanilla. Remove the pan from the heat and stir until the chocolate has melted. 6. Carefully remove the basin from the pan and take off the foil. To turn out, loosen around the edges with a knife, then turn upside down on to a plate and remove the bowl. Remove the paper on top. Pour some warm sauce over the pudding and cut into wedges. Serve the remaining sauce in a jug.