Chocolate-chai kefir cake

1 HOUR 30 + COOLING | SERVES 10-12 | EASY

The kefir gives this cake a slight tang and will help to keep it beautifully moist.

dark chocolate 150g, broken into chunks

plain flour 250g

cocoa powder 75g

baking powder 1Ω tsp

bicarbonate of soda 1 tsp

ground cinnamon 1 tsp

ground ginger Ω tsp

ground cardamom Ω tsp

ground cloves º tsp

kefir 250ml

eggs 3 medium

vanilla extract 2 tsp

caster sugar 150g

soft light brown sugar 100g

unsalted butter 125g,

softened, plus extra for the tin

GLAZE dark chocolate 100g whipping cream 75ml golden syrup 1 tbsp

• Heat the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4 and butter and line the base of a deep, 23cm loose-bottomed cake tin. Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water, or in short bursts in the microwave. Put the kettle on.

• Stir together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, spices and º tsp of fine salt in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the kefir, eggs, vanilla and melted chocolate. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the sugars and butter until just combined, then tip in the dry ingredients, followed by the wet. Use an electric whisk to combine to a smooth batter. Whisk in 150ml of just-boiled water from the kettle and scrape into the prepared tin. Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a skewer poked into the cake comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then remove onto a serving plate to finish cooling completely. • For a saucy finish, ice just before serving, but if you don’t mind the icing matt and set, you can do it as soon as the cake is cool. Chop the chocolate and put in a bowl, then combine the cream and syrup in a small pan. Heat gently until bubbles just start to appear then pour over the chocolate. After 3-5 minutes stir together until the chocolate has melted completely. Slowly spoon or pour all over the cake. Leave for a minute (or up to a day) then serve in wedges, if you like. PER SERVING 439 KCALS | FAT 22.6G SATURATES 13.2G | CARBS 49.3G | SUGARS 30.7G FIBRE 3.7G | PROTEIN 7.5G | SALT 0.6G