CHOCOLATE CARDAMOM DATE & SESAME CAKE

There has been a lot of chocolate on my blog lately, right? Well, I must be going through a chocolate phase and it might also be a seasonal thing as I tend to prefer chocolate based desserts when the weather is chilly. Nothing like some nice chocolate to brighten up a cold winter day! This time however I took a break from the truffle factory I had been running in my kitchen to a most rich, moist yet basic (but heavenly) chocolate cake that I jazzed up with some Middle Eastern influences: cardamom, dates and sesame seeds. I felt that the cardamom gave some depth to the overall flavour, and the dates (which are so underestimated in my opinion- there see to be so many date haters out there!) add a nice chewy fruity texture. The sesame seeds then add a bit of crunch and a toasty scent to each bite. Overall, there is a really nice mixture of flavours, but to be enjoyed in moderation (if you can resist)- this is a very rich and heavy cake!

A pattern in the cake batter (above). Adding the dates to the batter (below)

The first cut...and the heavenly scent of cardamom infuses in the kitchen...

Recipe for Chocolate, Cardamom, Date & Sesame Cake:

100gr chocolate
40gr butter
3 eggs- seperate the yolks & whites
50gr sugar
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
A handful of dates, seeds removed, chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla essence or 1 vanilla pod
30gr flour
For the chocolate coating:
50gr dark chocolate + 25gr liquid cream
Sesame seeds

*Ingredients for approx 20cm/8inch diameter cake mould.

Preheat oven to th4/180C/350F. Melt the chocolate & butter together, mix well to obtain a shiny and smooth texture. In a bowl, whisk your egg whites until firm. In a separate bowl, mix the egg yolks with the sugar, cardamom and vanilla. Add the flour, mix well. Add the egg yolk mixture into the egg whites and mix slowly. Then add the melted chocolate mixture, stir gently. Finally throw in the chopped dates and mix the batter gently one last time. Transfer batter to greased & floured cake mould and bake in oven for 40 mins. When the cake is ready, remove from oven and let cool. In the meantime, you can start preparing the coating. For the ganache, heat the liquid cream in a pot, then turn off heat, add dark chocolate, cover and leave for 5 mins. Remove cover, stir will until shiny and smooth. In a pan (no oil or butter needed here), toast the sesame seeds by placing on heat and keeping a close eye as to not burn them. You just want to get them into a nice golden colour and achieve a toasty smell. Coat cake with ganache and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.