Chocolate and cherry compote slices

Do we need any excuse for having a chocolate cake? Certainly not and there‘s no denying a moist chocolate cake is the most appropriate and enjoyable way to end a meal. If u like and savor it you are most welcome to have a slice baked with fresh cherry compote drizzled and served with your choice of either whipped cream, chocolate sauce or some of your favorite guilt free topping.

Whipping a cake never requires any special occasion or an excuse for me. If I am not mistaken I do bake as often as I can. Trying and testing with varieties of dry fruits, fresh fruits and sampling with nuts ignites my passions and keeps me rolling. I just enjoy shifting all ingredients in the baking pan, turning down the oven and wandering around while the oven does all the work.. After sometime, delicious aroma starts to waft through the house and as the kitchen warms up it is time for me to devour every crumb.

Ever since I have started baking from my 12th grade I have experimented replacing and substituting ingredients but never taken chances with the raising agents that gives life and lift to the cake .Even though the cake tastes delicious but the soft and porous texture makes a lot more difference. Once I remember I was baking at my in laws place and I used Sodium benzoate (preservative) instead soda bi carbonate by mistake and cake turned out to be rock hard. It was such an embarrassment when they were eagerly waiting for their lions share.

I have been visualizing this cherry compote and chocolate combo cake since ages and during my recent visit to the farmers market I quickly grabbed a carton of fresh cherry and happily skipped home to warm the oven and get my mittens ready.

Here are list of ingredients
For the compote1 cup of pitted fresh cherry
¼ cup sugar

Combine the pitted cherry and sugar in a saucepan and keep stirring on a medium fire till the mixture thickens and resembles like this. Remove and cool it.

For the cake2 cups plain Flour
2 eggs
1cup sugar
1/3 cup cocoa powder
2 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 cup butter
½ cup milk
1teaspoon Vanilla essence

Method. Shift the flour, baking powder and cocoa powder in a bowl. Beat sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla essence and whisk till it is mixed well. Add flour and milk alternatively and mix the batter well.

Grease a baking pan and pour half of the above batter .Spread the prepared Cherry compote evenly and top it with the remaining batter. Preheat the oven 180’c and bake for 25 to 30 min or until done. Slice and serve it with cherry compote.

Note- you can use baking cocoa for rich and dark color and some cinnamon to enhance the flavor the compote. Orange zest also adds zing to the chocolate cake.

On recent browsing of old pictures from the hard drive I found this butterfly cake picture that was completely wiped out of my memory. I baked this cake for my friend’s daughter on her third birthday.

It was a regular sponge cake and I used whipping cream and icing sugar for the frosting.