Dense Chocolate Loaf Cake - Nigella Lawson

Total Time: 1 hr Preparation Time: 15 mins Cook Time: 45 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 8
• 225 g soft unsalted butter
• 375 g dark muscovado sugar
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 100 g best dark chocolate, melted
• 200 g plain flour
• 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

Recipe

• 1 preheat the oven to 190c/gas5. grease and line a 23x13x7cm cm (9x5x3in) loaf tin. cream the butter and sugar. add the eggs and vanilla, beating in well.
• 2 next fold in the melted and cooled chocolate, taking care to blend well but do not overbeat.
• 3 you want the ingredients combined: you don't want a light airy mass. gently add the flour, to which you've added the bicarb, alternately spoon by spoon, with 250 ml of boiling water until you have a smooth and fairly liquid batter.
• 4 pour into the lined loaf tin and bake for 30 minutes. turn the oven down to 170c/gas mark 3 and cook for another 15 minutes. the cake will still be a bit squidgy inside, so an inserted cake tester or skewer won't come out completely clean.
• 5 plaace the loaf tin on a rack and leave to get completely cold before turning it out. it improves if left for a day or so before eating. this cake will probably sink in the middle because of its denseness.