Chocolate cake

Italian, I should add. The magic worked again. I had hands full today but the smell of chocolate made everybody feel good. The day is coming to an end. The cake is beautiful.

Hania has two friends spending the night, so I wanted to make something kids like. And they do. I let them eat it in her room. The cake is not messy. The plates are clean and so are the fingers. They don't need spoons nor forks.

The cake is on a dry side, so you can have it with ice cream or mascarpone. Or wine, like the Italians. In Italy, they might not even qualify it under desserts, more like a snack or breakfast. Just a delicate chocolate taste. Because it's so basic it combines well with other food to make a complete meal, with a pear, a banana, or a glass of milk. I prefer it just by itself, simple satisfaction.

So I got the breakfast covered for tomorrow. I won't see the desperate, little, beautiful faces screaming of hunger the first thing in the morning. They do get up before me. I think I'm going to sleep better tonight. 
                                                                     
Recipe adapted from Giallo Zafferano

ingredients
100 g (3.5 oz) chocolate
200 g (7 oz) butter at room temperature + extra for the form
200 g (1 cup) sugar
5 eggs at room temperature
200 g (1 1/3 cups) flour + extra for dusting the form
1 teaspoon (4 g) baking powder
pinch of salt
50 g (1/2 cup) cocoa powder
50 ml (1/4 cup) milk, not cold

directions
Preheat the oven to 180C/360F. Butter and dust with flour a 23 cm/9 inch baking form.

Melt the chocolate in a water bath. Let it cool.

In a small bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking powder and cocoa powder.

Cut butter into small cubes. In a bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the butter till fluffy. 
Add the sugar. Beat some more till you have a creamy mixture. Add the eggs, one at the time, allowing each egg to combine well with the butter mix. Incorporate the melted chocolate. Start adding the flour mixture and the milk at the same time. Combine it well. Pour it into the form.

Put it in the hot oven for 60 minutes. Do the toothpick test form the middle of the cake. It should come out clean.  Eat it for breakfast, snack, whatever you like! You'll enjoy it.