Mood-Lifting Chocolate Orange Cake
Posted on: Oct 10, 2024
If you're craving all things comfort, chocolate and cake as the wild, windy autumn nights drawn in, or you're in need of a pick me up, then here is your medicine.
This therapist-approved*, cake is not only de-licious, it combines the goodness of rich dark chocolate (which helps your brain release serotonin) with one of nature's best mood-enhancing secret weapons: cayenne pepper. Just half a spoonful of this fiery spice pairs perfectly with the chocolate to get your feel-good chemicals flowing fast. Plus, you’ll also get an additional vit-c boost from the orange zest.
Makes a perfect afternoon treat with a cuppa or when you're snuggled up at night. Also great to bake for someone you love who needs a little TLC.
Ingredients
200g unsalted butter, chopped, plus 1 tsp extra for greasing
200g dark chocolate, chopped
250g caster sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tbsp plain flour
½ tsp sea salt
Grated rind of 1 large orange
¼ tsp ground cayenne pepper
To serve
¾ cup cream
1 teaspoon vanilla paste or extract
1 tablespoon icing sugar
½ teaspoon cocoa
Equipment
20cm cake tin greased with butter and base lined with baking paper
Method
Preheat your oven to 170˚C.
Melt the butter and chocolate in a heat-proof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally. Don't let the base of the bowl touch the water.
Stir in the sugar and vanilla and leave to cool for 10 minutes.
Gradually stir in the eggs then fold in the flour, salt, orange and cayenne pepper. Pour into the tin and smooth the top. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the centre of the cake is set but not too firm.
Transfer to a rack and leave to cool completely in the tin.
To serve: Whip the cream and vanilla until they form soft peaks. Remove the cake from the tin and gently peel off the baking paper. Place on a serving plate and dust with the combined icing sugar and cocoa. Serve with the cream and steaming mug of tea for extra comfort.
*This recipe is a collaboration between Nicky Stokes, a trauma-informed psychotherapist who loves to explore the connection between food and how we feel through baking, and Ann Lowe, our food-obsessed Head of PR who is also the co-founder of Brightstone Clinic in Cheshire, where Nicky bases her therapy practice (& where Ann gets to sample lots of her baking!)