blackberries, blueberries, figs and edible dust in gold
Method
Preheat oven to 180C/Gas 4. Butter and line with greaseproof paper two 23cm round cake tins. Sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium sized bowl. Set aside.
Mix the buttermilk, oil, eggs (at room temp), and vanilla extract in a large bowl using a handheld mixer. Slowly add the dry ingredients with the mixer on low. Add the coffee. The batter will be very thin, which is fine. Pour the batter into the cake tins and bake for 25 mins or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Allow to cool and then cut the two cake discs horizontally in half, so you end up with four discs.
Make the ganache by chopping the chocolate into small pieces and put in a bowl. Pour a large pot of double cream into a pan, add 2 tbsp golden caster sugar, and heat until it’s about to boil. Take off the heat and pour over the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth. Sandwich the four layers together with a little of the ganache and then pour the rest over the cake and smooth to cover with a palette knife. Decorate with blackberries, blueberries and fresh figs and sprinkle a very light dusting of edible gold dust over the blackberries.
Recipe by appetite magazine at https://www.appetitemag.co.uk/chocolate-nemesis-cake/