VIOLET CRUMBLE EASTER CHOCOLATE CAKE

Prep Time: 30 minutes Cook Time: 1 hour Chill Time: 2 hours Makes: 1 Cake Difficulty: Easy

Ingredients

250g unsalted butter at room temperature

200g dark chocolate buds at least 70% cocoa solids

1 1/2 teaspoons instant coffee granules, dissolved in 1 ½ cups boiling water

250g caster sugar

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

250g self-raising flour

30 grams Dutch-processed cocoa powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 bars Violet Crumble, Crushed

1 cup Violet Crumble Nuggets

600 mls thickened cream

3 tbsp. Icing sugar

Method

1. Pre-heat oven to 170 degrees fan forced. Grease 2 x 8 inch round cake pans with spray oil and line with parchment paper, then set aside.

2. Make the cake: Place butter, sugar, vanilla extract and salt into a stand mixer and beat on high until the mixture has turned very pale (approximately 5 minutes). Reduce the speed of the mixer to medium and mix in the eggs one by one until completely incorporated.

3. Meanwhile in a heat proof bowl, add the chocolate, coffee and boiling water and mix well until everything has melted and is smooth.

4. Into the butter mixture, sift in the flour and cocoa powder and mix by hand. Add in the chocolate/coffee mixture and stir well by hand ensuring all the mixture has come together. The batter will be quite liquid, but don’t think you have missed something; this is how it should be.

5. Pour half the batter into each of the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour, or until the cake is cooked and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few dry crumbs attached. Leave the cake to cool for 20 minutes before removing from the pan, then set aside until completely cool.

6. Prepare the cream mixture by beating the cream along with the icing sugar using an electric beater or stand mixer until the cream is light, fluffy and thickened. Stir through the Violet Crumble bars reserving some for decoration.

7. Decorate by placing half of the cream mixture in-between the two cakes and the remaining cream on top of the cake. Sprinkle with crushed Violet Crumble and add a halved medium sized Easter egg on top of the cream with some additional cream inside of them and scatter with Violet Crumble Nuggets.