Perfectly moist and rich in flavor, this two-layer ultra-chocolatey cake, with a delightingly tart berry kick, is exactly what you’re craving. With espresso powder to really bring out the chocolate, and a touch of boiling water to ensure an airy and perfectly-textured sponge, you can’t go wrong with this recipe.

 INGREDIENTS

Chocolate sponge: 

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 ¾  cups sugar
• ¾ cups unsweetened cocoa powder — preferably dark
• 2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
• 1 ½ teaspoons salt
• 2 teaspoons espresso powder
• 1 cup buttermilk (regular milk works too)
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• 2 large eggs, one yolk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 ⅓ cup boiling water

Mixed berry jam: 

• 5 cups mixed berries (I usually use 2 cups of blackberries, 1 cup of raspberries, 1 cup of chopped-up strawberries, and 1 cup of blueberries)
• 1.5 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

Dark chocolate ganache:

• 1.5 cups dark chocolate (12 oz)
• 1 cup heavy cream

 CAKE LAYERS

Preheat your oven to 350 F, and prepare your two 8-inch cake pans — or one 9 by 13-inch sheet cake pan — by spraying with baking spray. 

Step 1: Combine the dry ingredients

Grab a moderately large bowl and add in your flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt and espresso. I don’t typically use stand mixers, as I opt for a hand-held whisk to avoid piling dishes in the sink — but if you do choose to use one, mix the ingredients at medium speed. Mix for about a minute, and ensure that all the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated. Then, set aside. 

Step 2: Combine the wet ingredients 

Take a medium-sized bowl and mix the milk, vegetable oil, eggs and yolk and vanilla. Once fully combined, pour everything into the large bowl from step one. Hand-whisk everything thoroughly for roughly two minutes, or use a stand mixer on medium speed for around the same amount of time. 

Step 3: Add in the boiling water

Arguably the most important aspect of this cake is the boiling water. The water will allow for an airy and light sponge, so it’s important you incorporate it into the batter correctly. Your water, which should be fresh-from-the-pot-boiling, has to be poured into the bowl in three increments. After each third is added, mix the batter into the water. The batter, once all the water is incorporated, is going to be fairly watery, so don’t be too put off. 

Step 4: Bake the sponge and set aside

Divide your batter into two 8-inch cake pans, and bake for around 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cakes comes out clean. Once they’re finished baking, let the cake cool for roughly five minutes before putting the two layers in the freezer. I usually like to take the cakes out of the pans and cover them in saran wrap before I freeze them, so that the cake won’t stick to the pan itself once frozen. You can freeze the cakes for up to around a month. 

Freezing the cakes, even if for just an hour or two, will help you immensely when assembling and frosting the cake, as the cooled cakes will better stay in place and won’t melt the ganache or jam. 

BERRY JAM

Step 1: Combine berries, sugar and lemon juice

Add your berries, sugar and lemon juice into a medium saucepan. Keep in mind that the jam will foam, so leave a few inches of headspace. 

Step 2: Start cooking 

Turn the heat to medium-low and stir the jam every few minutes until it begins to simmer. This should take roughly 20-30 minutes, as the jam is low in sugar and therefore gels slower. 

Step 3: Add cornstarch

Once the jam starts to simmer and is actively bubbling, lower the flame to low and add the cornstarch, then stir. The cornstarch’s purpose is to thicken up the jam a little bit. With this, remember that the jam is still going to be pretty runny until it’s refrigerated, so don’t overcompensate and feel like you need to add too much cornstarch. 

Step 4: Refrigerate

Pour your jam into a container and chill in a fridge for no less than two hours if you plan on using the jam in the cake. This will ensure that the jam is thick enough when assembling. 

GANACHE

Step 1: Chop the chocolate

Chop the dark chocolate into small pieces. The pieces don’t have to be uniform — just make sure there aren’t any large chunks. Place your chocolate into a heatproof bowl. 

Step 2: Heat the cream

You can either heat your cream on a stovetop or in a microwave. If you opt to use a stovetop, put your cream into a small saucepan over medium heat and cook it until it boils. If you’re using a microwave, place it in a glass bowl and heat it in 30-second increments until it boils. 

Step 3: Combine and mix

Pour the boiling cream over the chopped chocolate, and don’t stir. Let this sit for a minute or two before you start mixing the cream and chocolate together. Stir fully. The mixture should be pretty thick, but to turn it into that “frosting texture” needed to assemble the cake, put the ganache in the fridge for a minimum of an hour. 

BUILD THE CAKE

Now, with your three components ready to go, build your cake. There’s no right way to do this, so add as much or as little jam and ganache as you please. I typically like to make naked cakes — cakes without a full layer of frosting covering them — but do whatever feels right. I recommend using the jam to spread a thick layer between the two sponges. You’ll definitely have extra jam left over. The ganache can be piped on or just spread around with a spatula. 

Once your cake is assembled, it can be refrigerated for up to around two weeks. Enjoy!