Dark Chocolate Walnut Cake with Salted Caramel Coffee sauce

A little bit of sweetness can drown out a whole lot of bitterness and chocolate is that sweet happiness that you can eat. My most favorite form of chocolate is dark and bitter . Dark black chocolate (also known as black chocolate plain chocolate or sour chocolate) is a form of chocolate containing cocoa solids, cocoa butter, and sugar and without the milk found in milk chocolate. Also , dark chocolate has a reputation of being the healthier alternative to other types of chocolate .

This week i embarked on making a dark chocolate walnut cake with a salted coffee caramel sauce as a topping . Its dark , decadent & low on sugar and can be stored in an airtight tin for weeks . Happy to share the recipe but first , onto the salted caramel coffee sauce :

Things you will need for the Salted caramel - coffee sauce

• 01 cup sugar

• 1/4 cup water

• 30 gm butter

• 2 cup fresh cream

• 02 tbsp of strong black filter coffee concoction

• 01 tsp sea salt

Steps

1. In a thick bottom pan , put the sugar and water on low heat and keep stirring for 10 -15 mins - soon you will see the sugar caramalise to a dark brown color . This is your sugar caramel sauce.

2. Take the pan off heat and while the caramel is still hot , whisk in the fresh cream.

3. Be careful on this step , as the sugar is hot and will continue bubble . Keep whisking at arms length till everything is incorporated well . Now , add the butter , coffee concoction and sea salt & rest aside .

4. The sauce will thicken as it cools and the consistency should be as per below :

Things you will need for the Cake

• 02 cups of flour

• 01 cup dark cocoa powder

• 01 cup powdered sugar

• 02 medium sized eggs

• 01 tbsp baking powder

• 01 cup buttermilk ( Mix equal portion of water + yogurt )

• 100 gm butter ( In room temperature )

• 01 tsp vanilla essence

• 01 tsp instant coffee

• 01 cup of roughly chopped walnuts

Steps

1. Using a sieve , sieve the flour , dark cocoa , baking powder together and keep aside.

2. In a large bowl - mix the butter and sugar using a hand blender . If you do not have a hand blender , use a balloon whisk and all your might , till the mixture is soft and the color has changed to white .

3. Next , add the eggs - one by one into the butter sugar batter and mix well .

4. Now add the buttermilk - Do not worry if your batter splits at this stage - add the dry ingredients immediately and mix well . Lastly add the chopped walnuts into the batter .

5. Once you have added the dry ingredients , do not over mix the batter

6. Line a baking tin with butter paper and bake at 180 - 200 degree celsius for 30 mins

7. Cool the cake completely , layer with the coffee salted caramel sauce and serve.

Pro-tip : Always store cake in air tight containers and leave a small piece of apple in the box - it keeps the cake fresh and the cake stays well for up-to 01 week