Lighter Chocolate cake with chocolate icing

You’d never guess that this rich-tasting, light-textured sponge is lower in fat, calories and sugar thanks to ground almonds and yogurt

Prep:30 mins
Cook:20 mins
plus cooling

Easy

Nutrition per serving

kcal 269
fat 12g
saturates 5g
carbs 31.3g
sugars 20.4g
fibre 1.4g
protein 8.1g
salt 0.6g

Ingredients

25g butter
140g self-raising flour
25g cocoa powder, sifted
1½ tsp baking powder
50g light muscovado sugar
75g golden caster sugar
25g ground almonds
175g natural yogurt
¼ tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs, beaten
2 tbsp rapeseed oil
25g dark chocolate (preferably 70% cocoa solids), finely chopped
50g icing sugar
1 tbsp cocoa powder, sifted
25g butter, room temperature
1 tsp semi-skimmed milk
100g light cream cheese, straight from the fridge
100g Quark cheese
10 sugared almonds (optional)

Tip

Melting chocolate

To stop the chocolate from overheating and then seizing, chop it into very small pieces so it melts quicker. Don’t let the bowl it is in touch the water in the pan and once the chocolate has melted, remove the bowl from the pan immediately.

Method

Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Line the bases of 2 x 18cm round sandwich cake tins with baking parchment. Melt the butter and set aside to cool. Mix the flour in a large bowl with the cocoa powder, baking powder, both sugars and ground almonds. Stir the yogurt and vanilla into the beaten eggs. Pour this into the dry mixture along with the melted butter and oil. Briefly stir until just mixed, creamy and smooth. Do not overbeat.
Spoon the mixture evenly between the two tins and level the surfaces. Bake for 20 mins until risen and starting to come away from the sides of the tin. Remove from the tins, peel off the parchment and leave the cakes to cool on a wire rack.
Meanwhile, make the icing. Melt the chocolate in a bowl set over a pan of gently simmering water. Remove the bowl from the pan and leave the chocolate to cool. Sift the icing sugar and cocoa into a separate bowl. Add the butter and milk, and beat until smooth. Beat in the cream cheese and quark, then stir in the cooled, melted chocolate.
When the cakes are cold, use half the icing to sandwich both cakes together. Spread the rest of the icing on top in fluffy folds, then decorate with sugared almonds, if you like.