Coffee Chocolate Loaf

Dark, moist and delightfully rich, this is a staple dessert I bake every so often. 

Ingredients:
Serves 8-10 (1 loaf tin)

• 190g unsalted butter, softened, lus extra for greasing
• 130g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
• 190g soft light brown sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 60g cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 20ml whole milk
• 1 tbsp strong coffee, cooled

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius, then grease the loaf tin with butter and dust with flour. 

Using a hand-held whisk or a freestanding electric mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl to make sure all the ingredients are mixed in properly. 

Sift together the flour, cocoa powder and baking powder, then pour the milk into a jug, add the coffee and mix together. Add the dry ingredients to the cake batter in two batches, alternating with the coffee-flavoured milk. Mix well on a low speed after each addition and scrape down the sides of the bowl. 

Once all the ingredients have been incorporated, increase the speed to medium-to-high to get a smooth and even batter, then pour the mixture into the prepared loaf tin. 

Place in the oven and bake for approximately 1 hour or until the sponge is firm and a skewer inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out clean, with no cake batter sticking to it. Allow to cool for a while in the loaf tin before turning it out onto a cooling rack to cool completely. 

Original Recipe from "Cake Days by the Hummingbird Bakery"