A Light and Simple Chocolate Buckwheat Cake

Baking is so relaxing for me and while the fiance was still sleeping yesterday morning, I whipped up this light and simple Chocolate Buckwheat Cake. It was such a simple, quiet, and beautiful morning. The sun was shining through our kitchen window and it was just me, Ellie Goulding playing on my laptop, and my cake batter.

Now back to this cake. I made the cake to bring to a girl's dinner and movie night with two of my friends. I didn't actually try the cake before serving them so I was a little nervous. When I cut through the cake, I saw that it looked a little dense, but I snuck a little bite before everyone sat down for dessert and it tasted like a light chocolate sponge cake. Phew! The cake was spongy and moist. The chocolate flavor isn't so strong like in a rich chocolate cake but definitely still there. I might try amping up the chocolate flavor next time either by melting some more chocolate or adding two tablespoons of cocoa powder, or even just top it with a chocolate ganache. Nevertheless, this is a wonderful light chocolate cake. Perfect after a delicious and filling dinner!

Chocolate Buckwheat Cake (from Smitten Kitchen)
Makes one thin 9-inch cake, or a thicker 8-inch cake (which is what I did)

7 tbsp or 100g unsalted butter
100g bittersweet dark chocolate (70% is ideal), chopped or broken into smaller pieces
4 large eggs at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
a pinch of sea salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup buckwheat flour
1/4 cup almond flour

Powdered sugar, whipped cream or ice cream, and/or berries to serve.

Preheat oven to 350F or 180C. Butter a 9 or 8 inch cake pan and line the bottom with a circle of parchment paper.

Melt the chocolate and butter together in a double broiler or in short bursts in the microwave, stir frequently. Set aside.

In a mixing bowl and with a stand or hand mixer, beat together the eggs, sugar, and salt until light, pale, and doubled in volume. This can take anywhere from 5 to 9 minutes. The eggs need to be light and fluffy as it contributes to the cake's crumb and texture later on.

Gently fold in the vanilla extract and the chocolate mixture. Sprinkle the buckwheat and almond flours over the batter and fold gently to combine. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 20 to 30 minutes. For my 8 inch cake, it took the full 30 minutes. However, check at the 20 minute mark and then add time from there if needed. A tester inserted into the center of the cake should come out clean/dry.

Let the cake for 5 minutes before inverting it onto a rack. Remove the parchment paper from the bottom of the cake and place on a serving plate.

Serve the cake in wedges dusted with  powdered sugar, a dollop of whipped cream and a scoop of berry sauce. And then dig in!