Chocolate gâteau

Pre-heat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4. Grease 2 x 20cm sandwich tins with oil and line the bases with baking paper. Sift the flour, cocoa and bicarbonate of soda into a large bowl. Add the caster sugar and stir to mix.

In another bowl, gently whisk together the eggs, 225ml oil, milk, syrup and vanilla until blended. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and pour in the liquid mixture, using a spatula to scrape out the bowl. Whisk until smooth.

Divide between the tins and bake for 30 minutes until the top springs back when lightly pressed. Leave in the tins for 5 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks and leave until cold.

While the cakes are baking, make the ganache, as it needs plenty of time to cool. Break both bars of chocolate into squares and put in a bowl. Gently heat the double cream, sugar and vanilla until almost simmering, stirring occasionally. Immediately pour onto the chocolate and stir until completely melted. Leave until cold and starting to thicken. You can cool it in the fridge for a short while, but don't let it get too hard. If it does harden up, soften it by leaving in the warm kitchen. Or put it in a bowl over a pan of simmering water, but watch carefully and stir constantly.

Sandwich the cakes together with the ganache, then use to cover the top and sides. Make chocolate curls by running a vegetable peeler along the edge of the chocolate bar and sprinkle over the cake.