Baking The Old Fashioned Chocolate Cake

Our answer

Nigella's Old Fashioned Chocolate Cake (from FEAST) is a sandwich cake made with two layers of chocolate sponge. The cake layers are baked at 180c/350F for about 35 minutes. The temperatures given for Nigella's recipes are for a conventional oven, so for a fan or convection oven the temperature needs to be adjusted. Usually for these ovens you reduce the temperature by 20c/50F, but ovens vary so the temperature adjustment may be different and even at a lower temperature the cake may still bake a little more quickly.

For a convection oven in a microwave we would expect the temperature adjustment would be similar, but you should always check the manufacturer's handbook for more specific guidance on your particular oven. Some convection/microwave and countertop ovens are quite small and you should check if you can fit in both cake pans at the same time before starting the cake. The two cake layers should be baked at the same time, as the raising agents will become less active if the batter is left to sit for too long and the cake layers will not rise equally.