Chocolate cake with ganache icing

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas 4.

2. Place the eggs, flour, baking powder, sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl and beat until smooth.

3. Mix together the cocoa powder and boiling water to form a paste. Mix the cocoa paste into the egg mixture.
4. Divide the mixture among two greased, lined 18cm sandwich cake tins, levelling the top.

5. Bake for 20-25 minutes until the cakes feel springy to the touch and shrink away from the sides of their tins.

6. Cool in the tin, then turn out onto a wire rack to become totally cold.

7. To make the icing, place the cream and chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Carefully melt suspended over a pan of simmering water or very gently in the microwave.

8. Set aside to cool slightly.

9. Spread the apricot jam finely and evenly over the top of both chocolate cakes.

10. Use a third of the icing to spread over one of the apricot jam-topped cakes.

11. Sandwich the two cakes together, so that the icing is sandwiched in the middle.

12. Spread the remaining icing over the top of the chocolate cake in a swirl pattern.

13. Dust with icing sugar just before serving.