Chocolate Cinnamon Espresso Cake

Oh my goodness fudgy cake of deliciousness.

We were invited over for dinner chez friends this weekend for a “Mexican night”, where our fantastic hosts served us a veggie-friendly meal of quesadillas, chili, and buttermilk biscuits.

I volunteered to bring the dessert, and when I mentioned “chocolate and cinnamon” I was met with much enthusiasm.  So I needed a chocolate and cinnamon cake recipe.  I found a chocolate espresso cake recipe by my most favourite cookbook author, Nigel Slater, and thought the chocolate/espresso combination could be enhanced by cinnamon.  And oh yes, was it ever divine.

I was lucky enough to get my sister, Heather, over for some baking time.  Together we added ground cinnamon to the batter, along with the dry ingredients, and also dusted the cake once it had cooled with a mixture of cinnamon and cocoa powder.  The perfect amount of cinnamon to get maximum cinnamon flavour without the graininess that can come from too much ground cinnamon.

I’ve also been subbing out all-purpose flour for 100% whole wheat flour in just about all of my baking these days.  So far, I haven’t run into any problems, and this cake was no exception.  Yummm.

Chocolate Cinnamon Espresso Cake
Inspired by Nigel Slater’s Chocolate Espresso Cake, Serves 8

• 180g (6 oz.) fine dark chocolate, chopped
• 1 shot of espresso (about 44 ml or 3 Tbsp.)
• 140g (5 oz. or 10 Tbsp.) butter, diced
• 5 eggs, separated (into whites and yolks)
• 3/4 c. sugar (I used organic crystallized cane sugar)
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 Tbsp. + 2 tsp. cocoa powder
• 90g (3 oz.) 3/4 c. whole wheat flour
• 2 tsp. cinnamon, ground

Preheat oven to 350F and line the bottom of an 8″ springform cake pan with a round of parchment paper, and grease the sides with butter.

In a double boiler or a metal bowl placed over a pan of simmering water, melt the chocolate. Once slightly softened, add the espresso and let sit for 3 minutes.

Stir gently until the chocolate is completely melted.  Add the butter and stir until evenly incorporated.  Set aside.

Using an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites until stiff.  Gently fold in the sugar.

In a separate bowl, mix the baking powder, 1 Tbsp. of the cocoa powder, the flour, and 1 tsp. of the cinnamon.

Keeping the chocolate mixture off the heat, stir in the egg yolks.  Gently fold the chocolate mixture into the egg whites.

Add the flour mixture and fold to incorporate all of the flour, keeping as much air in the mixture as possible.

Scoop or ladle the batter into the springform pan.

Bake for 35 minutes at 350F.  The centre will still be slightly wobbly when it comes out of the oven, but will firm up a bit as the cake cools.  Let the cake cool in the pan, then release the sides of the springform.  As the cake cools, the centre will droop.

Flip the cake over onto a plate (it will be upside-down).  Remove the bottom of the springform pan, and peel off the parchment.  Place a second plate (the serving plate) over the bottom of the cake, and flip right-side-up.

Just before serving, dust the cake with 1 tsp. cinnamon combined with 1 Tbsp. cocoa powder.