EGGLESS PEPPERMINT CRISP CHOCOLATE CAKE

EGGLESS PEPPERMINT CRISP CHOCOLATE CAKE
A moist chocolate cake that’s egg free too!
INGREDIENTS
• 60ml (¼ cup) cocoa powder
• 180ml (¾ cup) boiling water
• 180g butter
• 430ml (1¾ cups) sugar
• 180g apple sauce
• 125ml (½ cup) plain yoghurt
• 8ml (½ T) bicarbonate of soda
• 5ml (1t) vanilla essence
• 560ml (2¼ cups) cake flour
• 5ml (1t) baking powder
• pinch salt
FOR THE ICING
• 500ml (2 cups) icing sugar
• 125ml (½ cup) cocoa powder
• 80ml (1/3 cup) milk
• 2 x 49g Peppermint Crisp chocolates,
crushed

METHOD
1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a 28cm round cake pan with baking paper. Mix the cocoa and water together. Cool to room temperature. Cream the butter and sugar until light. Add the cocoa mixture and mix until well combined.
2. Mix the apple sauce, yoghurt, bicarb and vanilla together. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together. Mix the yoghurt mixture and flour mixture, alternating, through the creamed butter mixture. Pour into the prepared pan and bake for about 45 minutes until cooked. Cool in the pan.
3. For the icing, combine all the ingredients until a firm but spreadable icing forms. Gently spread over the cake and sprinkle with Peppermint Crisp.
NOTE from Melissa: I replaced the icing with ganache

Tip
Apple sauce is a good binding agent. Replace 1 egg with 60ml apple sauce in recipes using 1-3 eggs (not advised for recipes using 4 eggs or more). This works best in moist baked goods like cakes and brownies.
Photo: Melissa Ann Vermeulen