Nici Wickes joins Jack Tame, bringing to the table her recipe for a delicious chocolate and plum ripple cake.

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A little cake for a big celebration.

Layer cakes don’t have to be just for large groups of people. This small celebration cake is perfect for 2-4 people but it still screams ‘show stopper’! 

Serves 2-4 

2/3 cups self-raising flour 

2 tablespoon cocoa 

¼ teaspoon baking soda 

Pinch salt 

50mls neutral cooking oil, I use grapeseed oil 

50mls natural yoghurt 

1 small egg 

1/3 cup white sugar 

1 heaped tablespoon brown sugar 

75mls strong coffee or hot water 

Filling 

300mls cream 

1 tablespoon icing sugar 

4 tablespoons plum puree (I used tinned Black Doris plums, pureed) 

70g white chocolate 

1. Preheat oven to 170 C fan bake. Grease and line a two 10cm springform tins.
2. Place all the ingredients up until the coffee or hot water in a bowl beat to just combined. Add the coffee/hot water and beat for one minute. Scrape into the prepared tin. It’s quiteliquidybut don’t worry. 
3. Reduce oven temperature to 160 C and bake for 25-35 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. Once cooked, allow cake to settle for 5 minutes in the tins before removing and allowing to cool completely.
4. If the cakes have domed up (most likely) cut to a flat top and then halve each cake through the middles so you have 4 layers in total.
5. Finely chop or use a food processor to break down the chocolate to a crumb.
6. Whip the cream with icing sugar to stiff peak stage. Gently fold in the plum puree and 2 tablespoons of the white chocolate crumb, so it’s marbled throughout the cream. The trick to getting the swirls is not to overmix it.
7. To assemble: Layer cake with plenty of cream and finish with a shower of chocolate crumb. Chill for an hour or longer to set

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