Samuel James Events Recipe: Salted Chocolate Chiffon Sponge

One of the best chocolate cakes around.

Combining a light chiffon sponge with a rich, creamy chocolate ganache and salty caramel icing – it’s a unique and decadent taste sensation.

Don’t worry about the prospect of having salt in a dessert, just trust us, it works so much better than it sounds like it would on paper.

Ingredients

For the chiffon cake:

125ml Sunflower Oil

7 Large Eggs, separated

2 tsp Vanilla Bean Paste

375g Golden Caster Sugar

200ml Water

50g Cocoa Powder

300g Plain Flour

1 tsp Bicarbonate of Soda

For the caramel icing:

250g Light Soft Brown Sugar

150ml Double Cream

140g Butter

½ tsp Salt

Chocolate Ganache:

250ml double cream

250g Dark Chocolate, finely chopped

Sea Salt Crystals

Method

Heat oven to 160°C, then grease and line a 25cm round, deep cake tin.

In a large bowl mix the oil, egg yolks, vanilla paste, caster sugar and 200ml water until well combined.

Sift in the cocoa powder and whisk until smooth.

Sift in the flour, bicarbonate of soda and 1 tsp salt, then combine.

In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites to stiff peaks. Fold into the batter with a large metal spoon and mix until everything is well combined.

Gently pour the mixture into your cake tin, and then bang it on the work surface twice to expel any large air pockets. Bake for 1 hr 10 mins or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Leave until the cake is completely cool.

Make the salted caramel icing while the cake bakes. Heat the brown sugar, ½ tsp salt and cream in a saucepan until the sugar has dissolved. Bubble for a few mins, then leave to cool completely.

Beat the butter until smooth, pour in the cooled cream mixture and continue mixing until softly whipped. Chill until needed.

To make the ganache, heat the cream until just boiling. Remove from the heat and pour over the chocolate. Leave to stand for a few mins until the chocolate has melted and you have a smooth consistency. Leave to cool at room temperature until the ganache is a pipe-able thickness, and then transfer to a piping bag.

To finish the cake, slice in half and fill with the salted caramel butter cream. Pipe chocolate ganache on top and decorate with the sea salt crystals.

Will keep for up to 2 days in a cool place.

For more recipes and inspiration, check out our the recipe section of our blog.