Dulce de leche cake

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan160°C/gas 4. Grease a square 20cm loose-bottomed cake tin and line the base with baking paper.
2. Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of barely simmering water, but don’t let the bowl touch the water. Leave it alone while it’s melting, then stir briefly until smooth. Once melted, take the pan off the heat, remove the bowl from the pan and leave the chocolate to cool a bit while you make the cake mixture.
3. Cream the butter and sugar until very light (a stand mixer or electric hand mixer are best for this, but you can do it by hand, too, with a bit of elbow grease). Beat the egg yolks lightly, then add to the mixture, a little at a time, beating well after each addition. Using a large metal spoon, fold in the ground almonds, then the slightly cooled melted chocolate, taking care not to knock out the air you’ve carefully whisked in. Fold in half the milk.
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4. Whisk the egg whites to soft peaks (if they’re too stiff they’ll be difficult to fold in). Use the large metal spoon to fold a third of the whisked white into the chocolate mixture – this helps to loosen it. Once well mixed, fold in the rest of the whisked whites, then fold in the flour, along with the remaining milk. Spoon into the prepared tin, level the surface and bake for 35-40 minutes or until an inserted skewer comes out clean.
5. Once the cake has cooled, remove from the tin, then gently spread the dulce de leche over the top. Cut into squares and serve with a cup of tea. Or you can serve it as a pudding, in which case warm gently for 5–10 minutes in the oven and serve slightly warm with cream or ice cream.