Chocolate Vienna Cake

Ingredients

• ¾ cup butter
• ⅞ cup sugar
• 5 egg yolks
• 4 squares Baker's chocolate
• 1½ cups flour
• 3 tsp baking powder
• 5 egg whites
• apricot or orange marmalade

Method

Cream the butter and caster sugar together over medium heat until pale and fluffy — this takes 4–5 minutes and incorporates air that will lighten the crumb. The friction and mechanical action are doing two things at once: aerating the fat and beginning the emulsification that binds fat and water. Melt the Baker's chocolate in a bowl set over gently simmering water — not touching the bowl to the water itself — then stir it into the creamed mixture along with the egg yolks one at a time. The heat of the chocolate will cook the yolks slightly and bring them into emulsion with the fat. If the mixture looks grainy or broken, you've either added the yolk too quickly or the chocolate was too hot. Beat briefly to recover it.

Sift the flour with the baking powder twice — this distributes the leavening evenly and breaks up any lumps that might toughen the cake. Fold it into the chocolate batter gently, using a spatula to turn the mixture bottom-to-top. Stop when you see no white streaks; overworking will develop gluten and compact the crumb.

Beat the egg whites to stiff peaks — they should hold their shape and look glossy, not dull or grainy. Fold them in carefully in two additions, turning the batter from the bottom each time. The whites provide lift through trapped air and steam during baking; rough handling collapses those bubbles.

Divide the batter into individual cake tins — paper cases or small pudding moulds work well. Bake at 190°C for 18–22 minutes. The cake is done when a skewer pushed into the centre comes out clean and the surface springs back when pressed lightly. Cool in the tins for five minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

Once completely cool, use a small spoon or melon baller to excavate a cavity from the top of each cake, scooping no deeper than halfway down. This creates a well for the marmalade. Press the marmalade into each cavity, then finish with a generous dollop of Marshmallow Frosting or Chocolate Frosting — both will soften slightly against the warmth of the cake and pool into the depression you've made. Serve the same day if possible; the sponge dries quickly on standing.