Alysia's Beer, Blackberry & Chocolate Cake Recipe


Ingredients:
175g Self Raising Flour
1 teaspoon Bicarbonate Soda
¼ Teaspoon baking powder
275g Soft Brown Sugar
2 Large Eggs
110g Butter softened
50g sifted Cocoa Powder
200ml Dark Beer (Timothy Taylors Landlord Dark is good for this)
150g freshly picked Blackberries

Icing:
100g Dark Chocolate
2 Tablespoons Dark Beer
50g softened Butter
100g Icing sugar sifted
Blackberries to decorate

Method:
Sift the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda into a large mixing bowl, lifting the sieve high to give the flour a good air flow. Then  add all the other ingredients, except the dark beer. Now, using an electric hand whisk, combine them for about one minute until you have a smooth creamy consistency. Stir in the dark beer, a little at a time, until it’s all incorporated. Finally fold in the blackberries.  Pour mixture into prepared and greased cake tin and cook on 180c for 35 mins, check after 30 mins until sponge is springy. 

Icing
To make the icing: Break up the chocolate into chunks and with the dark beer in a bowl set over a pan containing simmering water, without the bowl touching the water. When it’s melted take it off the heat. Mix in the butter and leave it to cool a little before whipping in the sifted icing sugar with an electric hand whisk. Decorate as required and add freshly picked blackberries to each slice as a garnish. Best not to add Blackberries on top of the cake as they will go off quicker than the cake ever will.