Chocolate, Hazelnut and Cookie Cake 

Ingredients

• 250g Co-op unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
• 250g Co-op Irresistible 70% cocoa dark chocolate, chopped
• 250g Co-op fairtrade light brown soft sugar
• 250g Co-op self raising white flour
• 50g Fairtrade cocoa powder
• 4 large Co-op British free range eggs

For the buttercream

• 150g Co-op unsalted butter, softened
• 200g Co-op chocolate spread
• 150g Fairtrade icing sugar
• 1 tbsp Co-op semi-skimmed milk
• 6 Co-op Irresistible triple chocolate cookies, to decorate

Method

1. Grease and line 2 deep loose-bottomed 20cm cake tins
2. Preheat the oven to 180°C/fan 160°C/gas 4
3. Put the chocolate, sugar and butter in a pan and melt together over a low heat, until the sugar is completely dissolved and everything is combined. Leave to cool
4. Put the flour and cocoa into a large bowl
5. Whisk the eggs into the cooled chocolate mixture, then whisk the chocolate mixture into the dry ingredients
6. Divide between the prepared cake tins and bake for 25-30 mins, until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool completely
7. Once the cakes are cool, make the buttercream
8. Whisk together the butter and chocolate and hazelnut spread until light and fluffy
9. Whisk in the icing sugar, then add the milk to loosen slightly
10. Place one of the cakes onto a serving plate and spread a layer of the buttercream over the top
11. Sandwich with the second cake, then spread over the rest of the buttercream
12. To decorate, cut 3 of the cookies in half and crush the other 3 into crumbs
13. Pat most of the crumbs around the sides of the iced cake, push the halved cookies at intervals around the top, and sprinkle with the remaining cookie crumbs to serve