Give me your best recipies for chocolate cake

Choc cake - made or otherwise. :p

I'm making DH's birthday cake and i only seem to have recipies for butter cake.

Ingredients (serves 12)
200g good-quality dark chocolate, chopped
200g butter, softened
1 cup dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/2 cup milk
chocolate curls or shavings (optional), to serve (see note)
Chocolate icing
200g good-quality dark chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup thickened cream

Method
Preheat oven to 170°C. Grease and line base and side of a 6cm deep, 22cm (base) round cake pan.

Place chocolate in a heatproof, microwave-safe bowl. Microwave, uncovered, on MEDIUM (50%) for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring every minute with a metal spoon, until almost melted. Stir until smooth. Set aside for 10 minutes to cool.

Using an electric mixer, cream butter, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition. Add melted chocolate. Beat until well combined. Sift flour and cocoa together. Fold half the flour mixture into butter mixture. Add half the milk. Stir gently to combine. Repeat with remaining flour mixture and milk. Spoon into prepared pan. Smooth surface. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Stand cake in pan for 15 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Spread icing over top and side. Top with chocolate curls, if using. Serve.

To make chocolate icing: Combine chocolate and cream in a heatproof, microwave-safe bowl. Microwave, uncovered, on MEDIUM-HIGH (70%) for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring every minute with a metal spoon, until almost melted. Stir until smooth. Set aside for 30 minutes or until thick enough to spread.

This is an easy peasy chocolate cake, one bowl, and it is delicious, not too rich, but nice an chocolatey!

2 minute chocolate cake
1 3/4 cup sr flour
pinch sale
1 1/4 cups sugar (you can reduce this if you don't want it so sweet, I have successfully done so)
1 cup full cream milk (or 1 cup water and 4 tabs full cream milk powder)
1/2 tea vanilla extract
2 tabs cocoa
1/4 tea baking soda
4 oz margarine or butter
2 eggs

Put everything into bowl of mixer and beat for 2 minutes. Bake in moderate over for approx 45 mins.


Icing
3 tabs butter
2 tabs cocoa
2 cups icing sugar
milk for correct consistency

Beat butter, icing and cocoa together. Add milk until correct consistency is acheived.

Easy peasy!

this is delish..... :)

Easy Chocolate Cake

Preparation Time
10 - 15 minutes

Cooking Time
80 minutes

Ingredients (serves 10)
• Melted butter or margarine, for greasing
• 250g unsalted butter
• 200g dark chocolate, broken into pieces
• 110g (1/2 cup) caster sugar
• 100g (1/2 cup, firmly packed) brown sugar
• 250mls (1 cup) warm water
• 340g (21/4 cups) plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 2 eggs, lightly whisked
•
Method
1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease a 22cm round cake pan with melted butter or margarine. Line base with non-stick baking paper.
2. Combine unsalted butter, chocolate, sugars and water in a heat resistant bowl or in the top of a double saucepan and stir over a saucepan of simmering water until melted and well combined (see microwave tip). Remove from heat and stand until lukewarm.
3. Sift together the flour and baking powder, and then gently mix into the chocolate mixture with a whisk until thoroughly combined. Whisk in the eggs. pour mixture into the prepared cake pan and bake in preheated oven for 1 1/4 hours or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Remove from oven and stand in pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool. Keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days. Spread evenly with chocolate icing or dust with icing sugar or cocoa powder to serve.

Source
Australian Good Taste - March 1997

Here's one for a flourless choc cake, for something a little different. It's from the exclusivleyfood website, i've made it a few times one with dark choc and once with regular milk choc.
Sooo moist and yummy served with ice cream/double cream and berries.


Serves about 8.

1 teaspoon instant coffee granules/powder
1 teaspoon hot water
100g butter
150g dark chocolate
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (1 teaspoon natural vanilla essence)
4 large eggs at room temperature (we use eggs with a minimum weight of 59g)
170g (3/4 cup) caster sugar
200g almond meal (ground almonds)

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius (160 degrees Celsius fan-forced).

Grease the side and base of a 20cm diameter (inside top measurement) round cake pan. We use a springform pan for easy removal of the cake. Line base and side of the pan with non-stick baking paper.

Dissolve coffee in one teaspoon of hot water.

Place butter, chocolate, vanilla and dissolved coffee in a medium saucepan over low heat, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat when chocolate and butter have melted and mixture is smooth. Set aside to cool to room temperature.

Separate the egg whites from the egg yolks, taking care not to break the yolks. If any of the yolk gets into the whites, the yolk will prevent the egg whites from whipping properly.

Using electric hand-held beaters or an electric mixer, beat egg whites with about half the sugar in a large, clean bowl. Beat until soft peak stage (when the beater is lifted, a peak will form and then droop over).

In a separate bowl, beat yolks with remaining sugar using electric hand-held beaters or an electric mixer. Beat until mixture is light, thick and creamy.

Gently fold cooled chocolate mixture into yolk mixture.

Break up any lumps of almond meal before gently stirring it into the chocolate mixture.

Spoon about one third of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and use a spatula or large spoon to gently fold the egg whites through the mixture until just combined. Fold in remaining egg whites until just combined.

Pour mixture into prepared pan and bake for 40 minutes.

Remove cake from oven and cover with a clean tea towel. Allow to cool in pan.

Dust with icing sugar