SALLY'S STICKY CHOCOLATE CAKE


As spoken of with awe by children and Royal Marine Commandos. Actually, it’s TV chef Phil Vickery’s sticky chocolate orange cake, but like all mums, Sally Shaw makes it her own. She also shares it as generously as it should be given that it’s a fundraising cake for the RPSCA, from whom she adopted her pair of furry killers, Dum and Dee. That pair of pampered felines share the same ‘take no prisoners’ attitude as their pet human, unless it’s raining when they’re cuddly indoors cats. The less said about what they’re like on vets’ trips, the better for all of us. Lucy helps because that’s what friends are for, but armed men are easier.

What Sally doesn’t mention to just everyone is to watch out for the 4 tablespoons of water that appear in the instructions, but not the ingredients. Nor does she mention that if she’s in a hurry, then she’ll add 1 1/2 tsp of baking powder and whisk it all together hard. The 4ounces or whatever she has handy of chopped chocolate she sometimes throws in, along with a little bit of brandy, doesn’t get mentioned either, but whether you do it her way or not, it’s still a wonderful recipe which you can find here. https://www.rspca.org.uk/getinvolved/fundraise/ideas/bakesales/chocolateandorange

(Sally is Lucy’s best friend, rescuer, provider of wisdom and unrivalled contacts in my Lucy Williams cosy mysteries. She’s the sort of woman who really ought to be in charge of the world. We have a lot of them down here in Dorset, and I wish they were in charge.)