Chocolate Cake Surprise

A colleague where Mrs Monday Baker works recently announced she was leaving so i decided to make her a cake.I then took it along to her leaving do.I got the basic recipe from Jo Wheatleys 'A Passion For Baking'.I had never made a cake before so this would be a new challenge.I was making it in secret so that Mrs Monday Baker did know about it.I made the cake on the Tuesday and stored it in a tin till the friday when i put the two halves together and covered it.
When i tried to get the cake halves out of the silicon cake tins one of them stuck and i lost a little bit of the sponge.Another bit broke off when i took them out of the tin on the friday.Fortunately i was able to stick it together and hide the blemishes with the ganache.It must have been okay as i got nothing but positive comments when i went to pick up Mrs Monday Baker later.

Ingredients

225g margarine or butter,softened.
225g sugar.
4 eggs,beaten.
1tsp vanilla extract.
200g self-raising flour.
1/2 tsp baking powder.
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda.
30g cocoa.
2 tbsp milk.
100g dark chocolate,melted.

Ganache-Ingredients

200g dark chocolate.
100g milk chocolate.
250ml double cream.


Recipe

1.Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees c/350 degrees f/gas mark 4.
2.Grease 2 x 20cm sandwich tins and line with baking paper.
3.Add the margarine and sugar into a bowl and mix until pale,light and fluffy.
4.Gradually add the beaten eggs.
5.Add the vanilla extract.
6.Add the flour.
7.Add the baking powder.
8.Add the bicarbonate of soda.
9.Add the cocoa.
10. Add the milk.
11.Mix the above ingredients until combined.
12.Add the melted chocolate and mix until smooth.
13.Divide equally between the tins and spread level.
14.Bake on the middle shelf for about 22-25 minutes until golden and a skewer comes away clean.
15.Turn the cakes out of the tins onto a wire cooling rack and leave until cold.

Ganache-Recipe

1.Finely chop the dark and milk chocolate.
2.Tip into a saucepan.
3.Add the double cream.
4.Melt over a low heat,stirring constantly,until smooth.
5.Pour the mixture into a dish,cool and then chill until firm.

Cake Assembly

1.Spoon half of the ganache mixture onto one of the cake halves.
2.Place the second cake half onto the first half.
3.Spoon the remaining ganache mixture onto the top half and spread smoothly.
4.Enjoy!.

                                                                          The Monday Baker

                                                                                                              Ps,Sorry there are no pictures at the moment.I forgot to take any.I am hoping to recieve some from the leaving do guests.