Caramel Mud Cake

Instructions

1. Begin with making the caramelised white chocolate ganache. Preheat oven to 160°C. Scatter chocolate evenly over base of a shallow baking dish; bake for 20 minutes, stirring twice or until caramel in colour. Transfer to a large bowl.
2. Bring cream almost to the boil in a small saucepan; whisk in chocolate until almost smooth. Strain mixture through a fine sieve, pushing down on solids; discard solids. Cover; refrigerate for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until ganache is of a spreadable consistency.
3. Preheat oven to 220°C.
4. Pour condensed milk into a 2-litre ceramic ovenproof dish. Cover dish with foil; crush excess foil upwards. Place ceramic dish in a larger baking dish; add enough boiling water to come halfway up side of the ceramic dish. Bake for 1 hour.
5. Stir mixture; cover, bake a further 30 minutes or until a golden caramel colour, adding extra boiling water to baking dish as needed to maintain water level during baking. Whisk caramel until smooth. Cover; cool to room temperature.
6. Reduce oven to 160°C. Grease a deep 20cm round cake pan; line base and side with baking paper.
7. Stir butter, sugar and salt in a medium saucepan over low heat, without boiling, until smooth. Add caramel and schnapps; whisk until smooth. Transfer mixture to a large bowl; cool for 15 minutes. Whisk in sifted flours, then eggs; pour into pan.
8. Bake cake for 1 hour. Cover pan loosely with foil; bake another 1 hour or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Stand cake in pan for 15 minutes before turning, top-side up, onto a wire rack to cool.
9. Place cake on a plate; spread top with ganache.
10. TIP: Butterscotch schnapps is available from liquor stores and adds quite a significant butterscotch flavour to this cake. Although it has a slightly different flavour, you can use Irish cream instead. The caramel and caramelised white chocolate ganache can be made a day ahead; store in an airtight container in the fridge. Bring to room temperature before assembling cake.

• Servings : 16
• Course : Dessert
• Ingredient : CSR Dark Brown Sugar