James Martin desserts book

[whitbybabe]

Just got hold of a copy of James' new book, 'Desserts ' ,and attempted to make the chocolate cola cake.I followed the recipe to a ' t ' but the cake fell apart.It literally crumbled.What did I do wrong ? There was a whole pack of butter in the cake and I think stork baking margarine might have been a better option,but I'm only guessing.Anyone had a successful attempt at this recipe?

[nickmo]

Hi W - not done this one - using any cola makes me shudder anyway even though it is a good ingredient for cooking beef, but I do know that there are recipes that use a veg oil or buttermilk in the mix which will help with the moisture content -

have you checked the proper settings on your oven by the way? - the simple test is make a couple of victoria sponges and cook on upper and lower shelves - they should rise together, and this will tell you if the thermostat is accurate, as you may have the settings too high - hence the dry result this time...

Quick trip to the dark side - or the Coca Cola Company as its also known...website gives you this recipe (pdf file) - http://www.thecoca-colacompany.com/heritage/pd f/RECIPE_colacake.pdf wehich might be an alternative to try - young Mr M doesn't always get the best results from his recipes, as a trip to his fan club - sorry the BBC Food site - will tell you..

Hope this helps...

[whitbybabe]

Thanks for that.Appreciate it.