NO SKILLS NEEDED

Alright, I'm not a fan of microwaving food in general, but this is one place where convenience overrides better judgement for me. 

I discovered this recipe more than two decades ago in a newspaper article. Unfortunately, this was before I bothered to record source files, so I won't be able to credit the original author. 

I have over the years adjusted the basic recipe to make it fool proof, so here is my take on it.

MICROWAVE CHOCOLATE CAKE 

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup flour

1 cup sugar 

1 Tbls baking powder 

1/2 tsp salt

3 Tbls cocoa powder 

2 eggs 

1/4 cup oil 

1 cup lukewarm water 

1 tsp vanilla essence 

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Sift together the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder);

2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the wet ingredients (eggs, oil, water and vanilla essence);

3. Add wet, to dry ingredients, and whisk together;

4. Pour into microwave safe cake pan;

5. Nuke for 10 minutes on high and allow the stand for an extra minute;

6. Turn out of pan and allow to cool before decorating. 

ICING:

Mix together 6 Tbls icing sugar with 3 Tbls cocoa powder and approximately 1 Tbls hot water to create a chocolate covering with a slight pouring consistency. Pour it over the top of the cake, allow to set and serve.

VARIATIONS:

I've experimented a bit with the basic recipe and these are some suggestions:

1. Add three to five grated carrots to the final mixture, it gives it more substance and keeps the cake moist for longer, but increase the baking time by two minutes if you do;

2. Experiment with spices and herbs, I've added cinnamon, grated ginger, coffee powder, rosemary, mixed spice and the sort, with great success;

3. Add citrus peel and substitute part of the water with orange juice for extra flavour;

4. Generally, l also add 3 Tbls each, almond flour and desiccated coconut to the final mixture for a richer and more flavourful finished product;

5. The basic recipe is extremely versatile, so feel free to play around with it and let me know if you find any awesome variations.

TIPS AND TRICKS:

1. To save time, instead of sifting dry ingredients, just whisk it together - learned this nifty trick from Jamie Oliver and I've not bothered with my sieve since;

2. Silicone bake-wear work like a dream for this, and I used to go for a traditional cake tin shape and layer this cake with loads of caramel treat and butter icing, but found the bunt shape lends itself better to cutting the cake afterwards, and the basic icing keeps the costs in time and money low;

3. It is not the richest cake and dries out quickly, hence the reason I add grated carrot and the sort, but it is an absolute winner if you need to put together something delicious on short notice.

WORDS: rhodenel©4JUN2025

PHOTOGRAPHY: rhoderuth©3JUN2025