Chocolate Hazelnut Cake (Not Nutella!)
"Chocolate hazelnut!" was the request I got from Alex in response to my offer to bake a belated birthday cake. So I did:
Yes, that's a Ferrero topping :D
I decided not to use Nutella because it has palm oil in it, which is not ideal for our health and the environment (read this and this).
Stute Choconut Hazelnut spread tastes just as good as Nutella, has no palm oil, and doesn't clump up like Nutella does when left standing for long. Plus, it has a smooth spreadability that makes it perfect for baking! It can be found in Giant supermarkets:
So, even though my recipe was adapted from Handle the Heat's Nutella Cake, I used Stute's chocolate hazelnut spread instead. I also added ground hazelnut powder (from Redman) to the recipe instead of using espresso powder.
The cake turned out a lot flatter and underbaked than it was supposed to because I halved all the ingredients in the recipe except the water, and only realized after the baking was over. Argh! The hazelnut taste wasn't there anymore, thanks to my careless mistake. Many tasters were kind and gave positive feedback more than I deserved!
The recipe below shows the correct amount of water to use so if you want to try it, hopefully it'll turn out better for you.
Chocolate Hazelnut Cake
Ingredients:
250 g light brown sugar 113g unsweetened chocolate, chopped 113g unsalted butter (1 stick) 20g unsweetened cocoa powder 70g Stute's chocolate hazelnut spread 1/2 tsp baking soda
250ml water 2 large eggs, at room temperature 100g all-purpose flour 90g ground hazelnut powder
1/8 tsp fine salt
Method:
1. In a large saucepan over medium heat, mix the sugar, chocolate, butter, cocoa powder, Stute's chocolate hazelnut spread, baking soda, and water. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Increase heat to high, bring to a boil, then remove from heat. Pour mixture into a large heatproof mixing bowl and set aside to cool for about 20 minutes.
2. Preheat the oven to 170C. Grease and line an 8-inch cake pan with parchment paper.
3. Once cool, stir in the eggs one at a time.
4. Gently sift in the flour, hazelnut powder, and salt until well incorporated. Pour batter into the cake pan.
5. Bake for 40 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes then flip the cake out onto a cooling rack to finish cooling, before spreading a layer of Stute chocolate hazelnut spread on the top (optional). You may add your own toppings (e.g. chopped hazelnuts, chocolate flakes, Ferrero) to your liking!
