Chocolate Raspberries Cake

I‘ve been looking for healthy and easy cake recipes all these years without success. I've to come accept the fact that all delicious cakes and pastries are packed with butter and sugar. This cake recipe is less evil because there’s no butter and the sugar content has been reduced significantly. However, with the fat and sugar from the whipped cream, this cake is only reserved for special occasion!

Cake baking is not easy. As you can see in the video, my piping skill is poor due to a lack of training and practice. Moreover, through trial and error, I have learned the following tips which may help baking in general.

1. Baking is a science, you must measure correctly and use the exact ingredients. When I cook, I just eyeball my ingredients and seasonings. Absolutely not for baking!

2. Measure all ingredients ahead of time. This is important because once you left creamed eggs sitting while you fetch the other ingredients, the air in the eggs escapes.

3. Whisking egg whites requires super clean utensils. Any traces of grease on the whisk or the container will not yield fluffy egg whites.

4. Always preheat your oven.

Ingredients

• 4 eggs (separate yolk and white very carefully. Absolutely no traces of yoke in the white or it won't whipped)

• 1/4 cup sugar

• 1/2 cup + 1 tbsp cake flour

• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder for baking

• 1 tsp instant espresso (or fine instant coffee) It enhances chocolate flavor. If you don’t have it, you can leave it out

• 1 tsp vanilla essence

• 5 tbsp milk

• 2 tbsp vegetable oil

• 1 tsp baking power

• 1/2 tsp salt

• Raspberries

• 1 cup whipped cream

• 3 tbsp icing sugar

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 F /175 C

2. Line baking tin with parchment paper and brush bottom with butter.

3. In one bowl, whisk egg white until fluffy and stiff

4. In another bowl whisk egg yolks and sugar until it‘s creamy and the batter forms a ribbon. If you whisk egg yolk first, then clean the whisk before working on the egg whites

5. Add oil, vanilla and milk to egg yolk batter

6. Shift flour, baking powder, salt, cocoa powder and instant coffee in the egg batter and mix

7. Mix 1/3 egg whites into the egg/flour batter

8. Then fold the rest of egg whites very gently. Remember to scoop to the bottom of the bowl

9. Pour batter into baking tray tin and tap the cake tin to remove big air bubbles

10. Bake for 20 minutes

11. Test with a skewer. If it comes out clean, it is done

12. Let it cool completely

13. Cut cake in half and brush with coffee liqueur

14. Whip cream and icing sugar until firm

15. Arrange raspberries on the first layer of cake and pipe cream

16. Arrange top layer with raspberries and cream