Chocolate Orange Wreath Cake

It’s beginning to look a bit like CHRISTMAS!!! YAY.

This cake is perfect for all Christmas cake skeptics – because who wouldn’t prefer a slice of chocolate orange cake, covered in silky chocolate ganache to a boring fruit cake. I chose to bake this cake in a bundt tin, so I could decorate it to look all cute and christmasy, like a wreath!

This cake is so simple and definitely a crowd pleaser for the festive period 🙂 Enjoy, and comment below with any questions or queries ❤

P.s. this is my first Christmas recipe of 2016, wooooo!

Ingredients

 

 

• 100g cocoa powder
• 340g self-raising four
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 500g caster sugar
• 5 medium eggs
• 15ml vanilla extract
• 275g butter, softened
• zest of 1 large orange
• 200g good quality dark chocolate
• 284ml carton double cream

Optional decorations:

• 4 or 5 glace cherries
• 4 or 5 twigs of rosemary
• 1 egg white
• 4 tbsp. icing sugar
• glitter (not optional of course)

Method:

1. Start by greasing and flouring your bundt tin. Also, pre heat your oven to 160°C.
2. Place your cocoa in a mixing bowl, and whisk with 200ml of boiling water. Add the butter, eggs and vanilla to the mix and beat with a wooden spoon, or whisk with an electric mixer.
3. Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl. Grate the orange zest on top.
4. Gradually incorporate the cocoa-egg mixture into the flour bowl. Mix well and pour into the bundt tin.
5. Place the tin into the oven and bake for 40-50mins, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
6. Whilst the cake is cooling, make the rosemary branches (If you want to decorate your bundt cake differently to mine then skip out this step 🙂 )
7. Place the rosemary twigs on a piece of greaseproof paper.Brush them over with the egg white, and sift icing sugar all over. Leave to dry – this takes about half an hour.
8. To make the ganache, chop up your chocolate and place into a bowl.
9. Gently heat the double cream in a pan until near boiling, and pour on top of the chopped chocolate. Whisk the mixture until glossy and smooth. I like to leave my ganache to cool slightly so it pours nice and thick.
10. Turn out the cake and place on to your cake stand. Pour the ganache on top and decorate with the rosemary twigs, cherries and glitter to make your cake look like a beautiful wreath!
11. Enjoy xxx

Notes

I sourced the chocolate sponge recipe from Tesco, however the wreath design is my own 🙂