buzzy chocolate cake
rating:be careful with this - I served it to some guests late at night, and one of them was still buzzing at 4 a.m. :)
250g butter
250g demerara sugar
4 large eggs
3 tbsp of espresso coffee (I cheat nowadays, and use instant espresso)
250g plain flour
2 gently heaped tsp baking powder
200g skinned hazelnuts, coarsely ground
250g good dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
23cm cake tin with a loose bottom, and ideally spring form. Line with greaseproof, even if the tin is non-stick.
preheat oven to 180C/gas 4. Beat butter and sugar until fluffy and pale. Add eggs one at a time, don't worry about curdling. Stir in the coffee.
sift in flour and baking powder, and fold them in, then fold in most of the hazelnuts and chocolate, keeping a little back for the top of the cake. The mixture should be quite firm - you may have to slide it off the spoon with your finger. Put it into the tin, and smooth the top, then scatter with remaining hazelnuts and chocolate.
bake for 1 hour 20 minutes, until the cake is springy. Leave for half an hour or so before cutting. Best slightly warm.
