Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake (18cm)

This recipe is ideal if you are out of eggs but want to put together a delicious chocolaty cake for tea. Children love making this cake as it is so easy.

1. 1

   1- Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) mark 4. Line an 18 cm cake tin with greaseproof paper/grease the tin(if has a removable base.
   
   2-Sift the flour into a large mixing bowl and stir in the caster sugar and baking powder. Beat the mayonnaise well into the flour – it is very important to beat thoroughly into the dry ingredients.
   
   3-Dissolve the cocoa in the boiling water and stir this gently until it’s smooth. Add to the flour mixture with the vanilla essence and give it a quick stir. Stir everything thoroughly until all the ingredients are blended but this time don’t beat the mixture because that will spoil it. Just keep stirring it gently until all the lumps are gone.
   
   4-Pour the cake mixture into the tin. Bake for about an hour or until the centre feels springy and a skewer comes out clean. Leave the cake in the tin to cool before turning out onto a wire rack.
   
   5-For the topping, dissolve 2 teaspoons of coffee and 2 tablespoons of cocoa in 2 tablespoons of hot water. Add the soft butter and the icing sugar.
   
   6-Beat the mixture thoroughly ensuring there are no lumps and spread it over the cake.