Chilli and chocolate is an ancient pairing that does wonders for the taste buds. 

Recipe: Michael Van De Elzen

I love this recipe as a treat because while it looks like a regular chocolate cake, the chilli kick means it is a delight on the taste buds. I enjoy watching people take their first bite if they havn’t tried it before, because they expect a regular sweet and chocolatey taste, and then their face lights up as they realise there are more flavours than meets the eye.

I like to call these my ‘winter warmer’ desserts as they warm you up from the inside out regardless of whether you are eating them warm from the oven or the next day. Making them in muffin trays makes it easy if you’re serving this as a dessert at a dinner party or for a family treat as you don’t have to muck around cutting a cake.

Serves 6
Prep time 5 minutes
Cooking time 30 minutes

Chilli Chocolate Cakes

INGREDIENTS

½ cup chilli infused olive or avocado oil
1 cup cream
1 tbsp granulated coffee added to 1 cup of boiling water
1 tsp vanilla essence
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups sugar
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1¾ cups plain flour
1 cup mascarpone for garnish
pinch of chilli powder (optional)

METHOD

Preheat oven to 180 degrees C.

Lightly spray a 6-hole muffin tray. Place chilli oil in a large mixing bowl and, stirring with a whisk, add first 7 ingredients, one at a time in the order listed, until combined. Sift together cocoa powder and flour and add to the wet mix.

Whisk well to combine (the mixture should be quite runny). Divide evenly between the muffin tins and bake for about 25-30 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Cool in the tins, then remove and cool completely on a wire rack. Serve with some mascarpone cheese and a pinch of chilli powder.