Chocolate blueberry cake and impressions

This cake doesn’t shy away from attention. The amazingly vibrant (and naturally-coloured) icing draws people to it. I brought it into work today to share with work mates and was overwhelmed with kind words. It’s amazing how cake brings people together.

The love that I received was received with a tiny bit of sadness, because I’ve only worked with these wonderful people for six months and am moving on. I’ve loved working with them and hope that I leave them all with delicious, cake-filled memories!

I won’t linger on the sad side of the story for too long, because I also have a great job opportunity coming up. As much as I don’t want to leave the fabulously creative, witty and clever people at my current work, my upcoming job was an offer that I simply could not pass up.

I start in just under three weeks, so it won’t slow my blogging down just yet. I was lucky enough to be able to use Baking with Gab work to make up a significant part of the portfolio which secured me the job! And, as ever, I’m so grateful to my readers, who engage with me and give me legitimacy!!

This cake is a little celebration of impressions – the ones we want to make, the ones that we wish we hadn’t made and those which we worry about leaving. It would also work as a good bribe to help people remember you more fondly! Whatever the occasion, cake is always appropriate. Norman was especially keen on it!

Blueberry chocolate cake:

• 125g butter
• 3/4 cup caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 1/2 cup self-raising flour
• 1 tsp bicarb
• 1/2 cup milk
• ¼ cup light sour cream
• 2/3 cup blueberries (about 100g)
• 1/3 cup choc chips (about 60g)

Blueberry icing:

• 1 cup blueberries
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 5 cups icing sugar

Grease a 20cm ring tin and line the base with baking paper. Preheat your oven to 180°C.

Cream butter and sugar together. Add eggs and vanilla. Mix in self raising flour and bicarb, followed by the milk and sour cream.

Pour half of the mixture into your tin and spread it evenly across the base using a spatula. Sprinkle your chocolate and half of your blueberries over the mixture. Mix the remaining blueberries into the batter left over in your bowl, then pour that into the cake tin as well.

Pop your cake into the oven for 45-50 minutes.

While the cake is cooling, whip together the blueberry glaze. I used a mixture of fresh and frozen blueberries. Put the blueberries and sugar into a saucepan over a medium heat. Stir them, pressing the blueberries with the wooden spoon to pop them. Once the sugar has dissolved and the blueberries have started to break down, grab a masher and mash them well. If the mixture starts to boil at any point, turn it down.

Push your blueberry mixture through a strainer and discard the lumpy bits. Set your blueberry liquid to one side to cool slightly. Put your icing sugar into a bowl and mix in the blueberry liquid, one tablespoon at a time until you get a nice, runny consistency. It should take 3-4 tablespoons.

Spread your glaze over your cooled cake and serve with fresh blueberries and cream.