Reading that something is a loaf cake makes it sound like something you might pass over on the dessert table. This one, though, I promise you will not want to skip. Chocolate-y, fudgy, but in a not cloyingly sweet way ... this one is gooood. Plus, easy to double if you want to make one and slide it in the freezer for later.
Next week, I'll share a Coconut-Pecan frosting that you can add to this cake or serve beside it ... assemble-your-own German Chocolate Cake, anyone?
Double Chocolate Loaf Cake
Yield: 1 large loaf
Ingredients
400 grams bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
396 grams (1 3/4 c) salted butter, cut into chunks
3 cups (396 grams) flour, all-purpose
130 grams white sugar
110 grams brown sugar
1 cup (86 grams) cocoa powder (preferably dutch-processed)
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp espresso powder, optional
6 large eggs, room temperature
2 cups boiling water
Directions
Heat the oven to 350°F with a rack in the middle position. Mist a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with cooking spray, then line it with an 8-by-14-inch piece of kitchen parchment, allowing the excess to overhang the long sides of the pan.
Melt the chocolate and the butter in a large bowl in 30 second bursts in the microwave. Stir each after each interval; continue until butter and chocolate are melted. Cool until barely warm to the touch, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder and salt and espresso powder, if using.
Add the eggs to the cooled chocolate mixture; whisk until well combined. Add the dry ingredients and stir with a silicone spatula until evenly moistened; the mixture will be dryish and thick. Gradually stir in about half of the boiling water; when fully incorporated, whisk in the remaining boiling water. The batter will be smooth, glossy and fluid. Pour into the prepared pan. Bake until the center of the cake rises, forming deep fissures on the surface, and a toothpick inserted at the center comes out with a few crumbs attached, 55 to 60 minutes.
Cool in the pan on a wire rack for about 20 minutes. Lift the cake out of the pan using the parchment and set it directly on the rack. Cool to room temperature. Peel off and discard the parchment before slicing.