Overrun with eggs?

If there is one thing we love nearly as much as our chickens, its cake. We spend a lot of time baking cakes, it's a perfect excuse to use all our eggs!

Below is our 'Go To' recipe for the using lots of eggs (EIGHT!). The result is a delicious, rich, but not heavy, chocolate cake. Perfect for... well, everything!

We call this cake  'Granny's Chocolate Cake', and as our granny had a lot of chickens, she made this cake a lot!

Ingredients You'll Need:

• 225g butter
• 225g caster sugar
• 8 eggs
• 300g drinking chocolate
• 110g self-raising flour

Instructions:

Step 1: Preparing the Batter

1. Begin by preheating your oven to 180°C (350°F).
2. In a mixing bowl, combine the butter and caster sugar. Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer, beat them together until the mixture becomes pale and creamy. This is the foundation of your cake's moistness and flavor.
3. Crack the eggs into a separate bowl. It's always a good practice to crack them individually into a small bowl before adding them to the mixture. This way, you can prevent any accidental shells from finding their way into your mix.
4. Gradually add the eggs to the butter and sugar mixture, beating well after each addition. The eggs will lend moisture and structure to your cake, creating that perfect crumb.
5. Now, it's time to introduce the star of the show: the drinking chocolate. you can use any, it was originally made with Cadburys, but we've been making it recently with Harrys Hot Chocolate & its a winning swap. Gently fold in the 300g of drinking chocolate into the chocolate. There's something about this bit that doesn't help but lift the soul.

Step 2: Incorporating the Flour

1. Sift the self-raising flour into the mixture. Sifting not only removes lumps but also aerates the flour, resulting in a lighter cake texture. Carefully fold the flour into the mixture until everything is combined. Be gentle – you don't want to overmix and lose that lovely airiness.

Step 3: Baking Time

1. Grease and line a cake tin with parchment paper. This ensures that your cake doesn't stick to the pan and makes for easy removal once it's baked to perfection.
2. Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin, using a spatula to smooth the top. Now, it's time for the cake to work its magic in the oven.
3. Place the cake tin in the preheated oven and let it bake for 30 to 35 minutes. Keep an eye on it as baking times might slightly vary based on your oven's characteristics. To check if it's done, insert a cake tester into the center – we actually like to come out still a little bit gooey, but everyone is different here. if you dont like a soft middle, make sure the cake tester is clean or just a few crumbs

Step 4: A Slice of Heaven

1. Once the baking time is up and your cake is beautifully risen, with a slightly cracked top and smelling delicous, carefully remove it from the oven.
2. Let the cake cool in the tin for about 10 minutes. This will allow it to settle before you transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely. The patience will be worth it, as cutting into a cooled cake is a much more satisfying experience.

Step 5: Enjoy the Decadence

1. Once your cake has cooled, it's time to decorate, we always go with a simple chocolate buttercream, to make, mix 200g of soft butter with 400g icing sugar until light and fluffy. Add 2-5 tbsp chocolate powder to suit the colour and taste you prefer, we usually go with 4. Mix in and add 2 tbsp milk then mix until smooth.
2. Sit back & enjoy