This makes a lovely moist cake which you can fill with vanilla icing and a chocolate top. Or why not try our variations for chocolate raspberry and chocolate blueberry at the end?

Double Chocolate Cake

Cake – 8 oz (225g) caster sugar
4 dssps cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt
9 oz (255g) plain white flour
3 oz (85g) plain wholemeal flour
1 1/2tsp bicarbonate of soda
6 fl oz (170 ml) vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla essence
4 tsp vinegar
2/3 pint (350ml) cold water
Filling – 1 1/2oz (45g) vegan margarine
4 oz (115g) icing sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
Topping – 5 oz (140g) vegan plain chocolate
Decoration – A few squares of vegan plain chocolate

1. Sieve the sugar, cocoa, salt, flours and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl and mix well.

2. Add the oil, vanilla essence, vinegar and (cold) water. Combine well with a fork or spoon, but do not beat.

3. Pour into two greased round 7 or 8 inch cake tins with a loose base. Cook at 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4 for 30 minutes or until the cake springs back lightly when pressed. Cool thoroughly.

4. To make the filling mash the margarine and vanilla essence into the sugar with a fork. Refrigerate until use and when the cakes are cool use it to sandwich them together.

5. Make the topping by melting the chocolate in a double saucepan*.

6. Smooth the chocolate icing on the top, then decorate with flakes of chocolate (grate the chocolate and/or cut it really finely with a sharp knife).

Variations – for chocolate blueberry or raspberry cake, put a layer of blueberry/raspberry jam in the middle of the cake along with the icing.

*If you don’t have a double-saucepan, melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl suspended over a saucepan of simmering water. Make sure that the bowl does not come into contact with the water.