I'm always looking for great new ways to use up my sourdough discard, click here to find any recipe I've shared on the matter, and after buying the Storey Country Wisdom Bulletin on Baking with Sourdough by Sara Pitzer all my prayers have been answered. 

This recipe has a fudge-like quality due to the use of sourdough, and it's all done in one bowl, what more can you ask for?

You'll need

• 1/2 cup sourdough starter
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil (I've used olive oil and it works wonderfully too)
• 3/4 cup cold coffee
• 1 teaspoon vanilla (I always skip this step as I don't think vanilla really adds to this cake)

Method

Put the starter in a large bowl, cover it loosely, and let it become active, how long this step takes depends largely on the temperature in your house, but it should take at least one hour. Once the starter is active and bubbling, add the rest of the ingredients, in the order given above, mixing well after each addition. 

Grease and flour two 22cm (9 inches) round cake pans, pour in the batter, which will be thin, and bake in a preheated oven at 175ºC (350ªF) for about 30 minutes, or until the cake tests done when poked with a toothpick. Once cooked, the cake should have pulled away from the sides of the pan.

Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before removing from the pans, then finish cooling the layers on wire racks. The cake suggests a mild chocolate butter cream frosting to frost this cake, but I always go with a simple dusting of powder sugar for an everyday take.