Put some water on to boil in the kettle and preheat the oven to 180°C/ 350°F/ GM 4

Grease and line 4 x 6 inch tins or 3 x 8 inch tins* see notes

In a large bowl cream the butter and sugar together until well combined, then add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well between each addition

Mix the cocoa powder and water together to form a smooth paste then add this to the cake batter and beat until well combined. Pour in the melted chocolate and mix again

Sieve the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl

Pour half of the buttermilk into the cake batter mix and fold in, using a large metal spoon. Then add half of the flour mixture and fold in. Repeat with the remaining buttermilk and flour

Add 275ml recently boiled water and stir well. Pour equal amounts into the cake tins and put into the over the bake: around 25-30 minutes for the 6 inch cakes and 30-35 minutes for the 8 inch cakes

Check that the cakes are cooked by inserting a metal skewer into the centre - it should come out clean. Once cooked, take the cakes out of the oven and let stand for 2 minutes, before removing from the tins and allowing to cool on a wire rack

Go ahead and bake any remaining cake batter if necessary

Put the icing sugar, cream and butter into a large bowl and beat until smooth

If using colouring, add very small amounts of the gel (using the end of a cocktail stick or small knife) mixing well after each addition until you reach a shade that you are satisfied with

Next, add the peppermint extract. The strength of the peppermint flavour does vary across brands, so do taste as you go. I used 3 ½ tsp

Finally, fold the chocolate into the icing until evenly distributed

To assemble the cake lay one of the layers of cake onto a board and spread a couple of spoonfuls of the icing on top. then add another layer of cake

Add an equal amount of icing, spread it out and add the third layer of cake. If you are making the 4 layer 6 inch cake, repeat with the final layer of cake

Once the final layer of cake has been added, carefully spread a thin layer of icing all over the top and sides of the cake - a palette knife is good for this

This thin layer gives a good base to add the rest of the icing. I found that adding about half of the remaining icing in the next layer, followed by the rest in a final layer produced a good end result

Move your cake onto a serving plate and let it stand for 5 minutes. Then use your palette knife to put a neat pattern onto cake - I gently pulled my knife from the bottom to the top of the cake all around the sides to give a subtle line effect all around. On the top I pulled the knife from the centre to the edge in a wide arch