Chocolate orange cake

It's my birthday. A fact that isn't thrilling me right now. Aside from anything else I was utterly determined that I would no longer be in my job by my birthday. It has been 6 months of doing a job that is tedious, frustrating, pointless, and that I'm not very good at. This is not good for general morale. Having said that, I must also say that I have a beautiful flat that I love beyond anything, the job pays the bills, and I have made many, many friends who live close by. So mild melancholy on my birthday will surely be dismissed shortly.

I watched Julie and Julia this evening. I saw it in the cinema, but hadn't seen it since. It's a fun film - in case you didn't know what it's about, it's about Julia Child writing her famous cookbook (that I'd never heard of prior to watching the film) about teaching Americans French cookery, and Julie, who decides (years later) to cook her way through it. She blogs about it and it helps her to survive her job in a call centre.

I can relate. Though I must admit that my taste runs far more to baking than cooking. I'd like to learn to cook well at some point, but for now, cake is far more important to me. I decided to make a chocolate orange cake for my birthday cake, and so did my usual googling and came up with nothing that I felt would give a really good cake. I was going for quite a squidgy chocolate orange cake, and so decided to improvise slightly and see what happens. Tragically I overcooked it very slightly and so a bit of one edge is slightly burnt. I'm not sure how it'll taste, but I'll add to this tomorrow once I've eaten it!

I used the normal sponge cake as a base, which seems to be the cake I'm having the most issue with right now! I decided to try the all-in-one method due to my repeated failure at beating the eggs in without curdling (however, my cake-business friend Hannah says she can do it, so hopefully we can bake a cake together soon and I can get the knack back that I have for the previous decade!).

8 oz self raising flour
8 oz soft brown sugar (for added squishiness)
8 oz marg (might try butter next time)
4 medium eggs
1 tsp orange essence
1 orange - grated zest only
50g dark chocolate, melted

Sieve the flour in the bowl and then add everything else. Whisk with a mixer for about a minute (according to the all-knowing Delia Smith). Then pour into a tin, or into cupcakes (or whatever shape you fancy) and cook for about an hour at 180C (depending on your oven).

For the icing I melted the other 50g of dark chocolate left from the bar, mixed in some marg and icing sugar and a bit of orange juice. I just kept adding bits until it tasted about right. Was very yummy in fact. And in happy birthday style the hot water had run out so I didn't have to do the washing up. What happy days are these. Hopefully I will sleep well tonight and then be a cheery, happy person in the morning.

The question I have is how much longer before I just quit my job. How much longer can I take it?! Definitely longer with all the baking than without.