This easy Terry’s chocolate orange cake is a rich, moist chocolate sponge made with fresh orange juice and zest – simply beat everything in one bowl and bake. Cover with a glossy chocolate glaze and decorate with Terry’s Chocolate Orange segments.Make sure all your cake ingredients are at room temperature before starting.
Preheat the oven to 340°F (170°C). Spray a 9-inch (23cm) springform pan with cake release, or grease with softened butter and dust with flour, shaking out any excess. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper.
Sift the flour and cocoa powder into a large bowl. Add the sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt and mix together with a balloon whisk.
2 ½ cups (300g) all-purpose flour, ⅔ cup (60g) unsweetened cocoa powder, 1 ⅔ cups (330g) superfine sugar, 3 tsp baking powder, 1 ½ tsp baking soda, ½ tsp salt
Add the butter, eggs, orange zest and juice.
⅞ cup (200g) unsalted butter, 3 large eggs, 3 oranges, zest only, ¾ cup (180ml) orange juice
Start beating on the lowest speed setting until the ingredients start to come together.
Increase the speed gradually, until the batter is completely smooth. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure everything is incorporated.
Transfer the batter to the prepared pan, level the top and make a small dip in the center so it rises evenly. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour. If the cake is browning too quickly, loosely tent with foil after 25 minutes, leaving a gap above the pan so the cake can still rise.
The cake is done when it is well risen, springy to the touch and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
Orange Drizzle (optional)
While the cake is cooling in the pan for a few minutes, stir the sugar and orange juice in a saucepan over low heat until the sugar dissolves.
½ cup (100g) sugar, ½ cup (120ml) orange juice
Poke holes all over the cake with a skewer, then pour the syrup over the top so it soaks in.
Run a knife around the edge of the pan and transfer the cake to a plate. Leave to cool completely before adding the chocolate glaze.
Chocolate Glaze
Put the chocolate chips and chopped Terry’s Chocolate Orange segments in a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream until small bubbles appear around the edges of the pan, pour it over the chocolate and leave to stand for 2–3 minutes.
⅔ cup (100g) dark chocolate chips, 3 segments Terry's Chocolate Orange, ½ cup (120ml) heavy cream
Add the golden syrup or honey, then stir slowly with a small balloon whisk, starting in the center of the bowl and working outward, until the chocolate melts and the glaze is shiny and smooth.
1 tbsp golden syrup
Leave the glaze to cool slightly so that it drips slowly off a spoon. Pour over the cooled cake, letting it drip down the sides – you might not need all of the glaze.
Leave the glaze to set slightly then decorate with segments of Terry’s Chocolate Orange and orange zest.
1 Terry's Chocolate Orange, 1 orange, zest strips only
Video
Notes
Cupcakes: Fill paper liners two-thirds full and start checking after 18 minutes. Mini chocolate orange segments are the perfect size to decorate.Layer cake: Divide the batter between two 8-inch (20cm) pans and bake for 30–35 minutes at 350°F (180°C). Sandwich with chocolate mascarpone frosting, made with a chocolate orange bar instead of dark chocolate.Marble cake: For a chocolate and orange swirl, try my Chocolate Orange Marble Cake.Plain chocolate cake: Leave out the zest, swap the orange juice for whole milk and use plain dark chocolate in the glaze.No Terry’s?: Use any chocolate orange bar in the glaze and decorate with Lindt chocolate orange truffles or candied orange peel.Nutritional information is always approximate, and will depend on quality of ingredients and serving sizes.