Do you ever find that you go through stages of cooking certain things? Like you will always make that particular salad or pie when people are over for lunch? When you have to think of a dessert to make, one will always be front and centre of your mind? Then a couple of months later you move on and those easy and nailed recipes are forgotten again? I am totally guilty of this which is why I’m resurrecting this Chocolate and Raspberry Cake from the vaults of my cooking brain – which to be fair is most of my brain!

This was such a classic in my household and always got such a great reaction I made it as part of my two-courses-in-one-hour challenge on MasterChef UK. And it was very much a hit with Gregg Wallace and John Torode who polished the served slice off. After that I just stopped making it. But while working out what to make for friends coming for dinner recently I remembered it and thought this cake would finish off the meal perfectly, as it did.

Couple of notes, I have found adding the raspberries at the end is the best way of ensuring they don’t all drop to the base of the cake. But you can stir them through the mixture before cooking if you would prefer. This cake will crack on top. If you would prefer you could turn it upside down to cool and then cover with a chocolate ganache and perhaps garnish with fresh berries or free-dried raspberries. I have served this with a raspberry coulis, crushed Amoretti biscuits and mascarpone mixed with Amaretto liqueur.