When food is described perfectly in words, those words can conjure an irresistible image that we wish we could actually taste in real life. It’s not enough that we have an active imagination when we read about a mouth-watering dish being described in our favorite books!

That’s exactly what our newest video series Screen To Table wants to do: transform the dishes and other food we have only read about come to life. In our first episode, we tackle a dish so irresistible, an entire chapter was devoted around it.

This chocolate cake from a beloved children’s book is a moist chocolate cake recipe covered in a fudge chocolate ganache and filled with a milk chocolate frosting. You won’t be able to resist this. The kid in the book certainly couldn’t!

What makes this chocolate cake so special?

This moist chocolate cake was made popular in the Roald Dahl’s beloved classic Matilda. Chapter 11 of the book, entitled “Bruce Bogtrotter and the Cake” described it as “rich and delicious” and covered in a dark chocolate frosting. It was so good, someone allegedly stole a precious slice! This was the main antagonist Miss Agatha Trunchbull’s “special chocolate cake” and the rest of the cake was being eaten, under threat, by Bruce Bogtrotter, the 11-year-old boy accused of the theft.

The cake was also described as being 18-inches wide but that’s just too big to fit in any home oven! So, to recreate it with success, we made a more manageable cake for you to try at home. There’s no need to steal a slice of this cake and face the wrath of a Miss Trunchbull!

Ready your hands to dig into this cake! Here’s the recipe:

Moist Chocolate Cake Recipe

Takes 1 hour 40 minutes plus cooling and chilling
Makes 1 three-tiered 7-inch cake or 12 servings

Moist Chocolate Cake Recipe Ingredients

For the chocolate cake:
2 tablespoons vinegar
2 1/2 cups fresh milk
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1 tablespoon baking soda
1/2 tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 1/2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup freshly brewed coffee, strong and hot (1/2 cup hot water + 2 tablespoons instant coffee)

For milk chocolate frosting filling:
1/4 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/4 cup fresh milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the dark chocolate ganache frosting:
1 180-gram pack dark chocolate buttons
3/4 cup all-purpose cream
1 tablespoon honey or corn syrup

How To Make Moist Chocolate Cake

1 Make the cake: Preheat oven to 325 degrees F or 165 degrees C. Lightly butter and then line 3 7-inch round baking pans with parchment. Set aside.
2 In a large measuring jug, mix vinegar and fresh milk. Set aside 5 minutes. In a large bowl, sift flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and baking powder. Whisk in salt and sugar. Set aside.
3 In the bowl of a mixer with the whisk attachment, whisk eggs, oil, vanilla extract, coffee, and milk mixture together. Add flour mixture, whisking on Low until mixed.
4 Divide the batter between the three cake pans evenly. Tap the cake pans on the counter gently to release any bubbles. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the cakes emerges clean. Cool completely on a wire rack. Remove cake from the pans and discard the parchment paper. Trim the tops so it’s level. Set aside until ready to assemble.
5 Meanwhile, make the milk chocolate frosting filling: In the bowl of a stand mixer with the beater attachment, cream softened butter until light and creamy. Add powdered sugar and cocoa powder. Beat until light and fluffy. Add milk and vanilla and beat until light. Set aside.
6 Make the dark chocolate ganache frosting: Heat the dark chocolate buttons and cream in a microwave-safe bowl on High for 45 seconds. Stir. Heat again on High for 10 seconds. Stir. If after stirring the chocolate pieces are still not completely melted, heat again in intervals of 10 seconds, stirring after every heating until completely melted. Stir in honey. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside to cool to room temperature. (The ganache should stay soft enough to spread. If it has hardened, gently heat in the microwave for 10 seconds and stir until spreadable again.)
7 Assemble the cake: On a cake turntable, place one cake layer in the center. Top with milk chocolate filling and level. Place the second cake layer on top and cover with another layer of filling. Place the third cake layer on top. Cover the cake in a thin coating of chocolate filling then chill at least 1 hour.
8 Once chilled, cover the cake in the ganache frosting.

Screen To Table is a video series that recreates food, dishes, and recipes from fictional works, whether from books, TV shows, movies, or other pop culture references.

[ArticleReco:{“articles”:[“20628″,”22270″,”24843″,”24578”]}]

***