Sourdough Chocolate Cake

I always make chocolate cake for birthdays and occasional lunch box treats and I wanted to try a sourdough cake since I currently have three sourdough starters with which to experiment.  My birthday came and went just recently and this was the cake my kids made me for the festivities.

The process of fermenting the ingredients is reputed to breakdown the mixture in a way that makes the final baked product more easily digestible and have a lower glycemic index (GI) which is the effect food has on a person's blood glucose level.  If digestion and low GI isn't a concern of yours then using a variety of sourdough recipes is also a convenient way to use up your discarded portion of sourdough when you must feed your starter ~ so the more recipes you have on hand then the easier it is not to waste a drop.  Fermented baked goods also are supposed to have a longer counter life and stay moist for longer.

This recipe was adapted from a bunch of sourdough cake recipes floating out there in cyberspace.  King Arthur Flour has a recipe that is pretty similiar to this but makes a larger cake.  Feel free to double this for a larger sheet cake or a double layer cake.  The cake is really easy to make and stays moist and yummy for days depending on what you use for icing.  When I have made it for lunch boxes, I don't ice it at all.  In cool weather, I like a homemade coconut butter for an icing with a touch of maple syrup for a bit of sweetness; it hardens like a ganache but isn't crazy sweet and is easy on the digestion.  In hot weather, any icing is in trouble stored on the counter especially in Perth heat.

Printer Version

• 1/2 cup of soy milk
• 1 Tbsp. of apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup of strong coffee
• 1/2 cup of sourdough starter
• 1 cup of whole wheat or white flour
• 1 cup of natural cane sugar
• 1/2 cup of melted coconut oil or any other oil of your choice
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 3/4 tsp. baking soda
• 1/3 cup plus 1 Tbsp. of Dutch processed cocoa powder, sifted
• 1 egg or 3 Tbsps. water mixed with 1 Tbsp. of ground flax

In a medium-sized mixing  bowl, mix together the soy milk and cider vinegar.  Once the milk mixture has thickened then whisk the coffee and sourdough starter and then add the flour and mix until smooth.  Cover and set this aside from 3-8 hours.  The mixture will get somewhat elastic and rise a bit.

After fermentation

Once the mixture has suitably fermented, mix sugar, oil, egg/flax egg, salt, vanilla, cocoa powder and baking soda.  After thoroughly mixing, add to the fermented mixture and mix well.

Finished batter waiting for the oven to heat up.
See the bubbles?

Pour batter into a greased and baking paper lined 8 inch square pan or equivalent sized cake tin and bake at 350F or 180C for 35 minutes.  Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before removing from pan to cool completely.