A friend asked for the recipe, as she had lost her copy and couldn’t find it here. That needs to be fixed…
This is a cake I do on special occasions, both because it can be a bit pricy to do and because too much of it can be deadly. Enjoy.
Recipe by C. Blake Powers based on version from the Death By Chocolate TV show
Items Needed:
Mixer
cake pans
wire racks
double boiler or boiler and stainless steel bowls
whisk
spatula
fork
spoons
knife
Cake Ingredients:
4T + 1t unsalted butter
1/4 cup + 1t all purpose flour
3 whole eggs
3 oz. unsweet. choc. in pieces
2T unsweet. cocoa
1 C gran. sugar
2 oz. semisweet choc. in pieces
1t baking powder
1t vanilla
1/2t salt
1/4 cup sour cream
Optional ingredients:
Chocolate Chips
nuts
Cake Directions:
Preheat oven to 325o. Coat a 9-inch cake pan (round) with unsalted butter. Measure dry ingredients (2nd column, above) together then
sift to ensure complete mixing and uniformity.
In a double boiler, melt butter over medium to medium-low heat. Add chocolate and allow to melt. If you are in a rush, dump it all in at once and let it melt. I’ve noticed no difference in texture, etc. for doing it this way. This is called a chocolate liqueur.
As the chocolate is melting, break the 3 eggs into a medium to large mixing bowl and whisk until blended. Then add 1 cup of
granulated sugar. Whisk until well blended. Then add 1 teaspoon of vanilla and whisk again. If you eyeball the vanilla and use more, it does not matter.
Mix melted butter and chocolate together, remove top part of double boiler being sure to wipe the bottom of the pot to prevent any
condensation/water from getting into the chocolate or the mix. Pour chocolate liqueur into egg mixture and whisk to blend. When well mixed, add dry ingredients – whisk slowly at first to keep from spreading dry ingredients all over kitchen. When this is mixed, add in sour cream and repeat whisking. Once all ingredients of basic recipe are blended, then add optional to your taste. I find 1/3 bag of semi-sweet chips is a very good add to the mix.
Pour final mix into greased pan. Place in oven and bake for app. 40 minutes. If additional ingredients are used, you may need to increase baking time by 10 minutes. Cool on wire rack and cut in half.
Filing:
1 cup of toasted, crushed (food processor) hazelnuts. These are best if toasted and peeled a day or two ahead of time and soaked in some brandy or Frangelica hazelnut liqueur. Use at least 2T.
Icing (Chocolate Ganache):
Icing Ingredients:
1.5 cups heavy cream
3T unsalted butter
3T granulated sugar
12 oz. semisweet chocolate in .5 oz. pieces—I find 14 is better and will make icing darker. Up to 18 ounces can be used if desired. I also recommend doubling the recipe to ensure enough for decorating and proper glazing of cake.
Icing Directions:
Place chocolate in a large mixing bowl. Bring cream, sugar, and butter to a boil in a saucepan. Keep a ladle in the pan to prevent boiling over and the creation of messes. Pour boiling cream mix over chocolate pieces. Whisk together until chocolate is melted and ensemble is completely mixed.
Reserve 1 cup of mix for decorating. I strongly suggest refrigerating it for at least 1 hour. Mix 1/2 to 1 cup of mixture with hazelnuts. Again, I strongly suggest refrigerating it for at least 1 hour until almost firm. Reserve remainder for icing finished cake. This can be placed on top of sauce pan containing water. Said pan can be placed on low to keep icing fluid while other parts are chilling/firming.
Denouement:
Place bottom layer of cake on wire rack located over catch-pan. Spread chocolate-hazelnut mixture on bottom layer of cake. Then place top
layer over hazelnut layer. Pour liquid ganache over the cake using ladle to direct and ensure that top and sides are completely covered. Refrigerate until ganache has set. Icing in pan can be added to that reserved for decoration. FYI, cake does not have to be decorated as glaze is what is presented in fine restaurants. If you want to decorate it, do what makes you happy.
Variations
My favorite is to bake two cakes and make the final cake either two- or four-layer depending on humor of the moment. This will require all
ingredients, especially the ganache, to be doubled.
In place of hazelnuts, use raspberries. Run a bag of frozen raspberries through the food processor. Take 1 cup of the processed raspberries and soak them in 2T to 1/4 cup (or more) of Chambord raspberry liqueur for up to 24 hours. Then mix them with 1 to 1.5 cups of the icing mixture and refrigerate until stiff. Then use in place of hazelnuts. For decorating, rinse and drain 1 pint of fresh raspberries and soak them in Chambord. Place these around the top of the cake. You can also place a few around the bottom for effect. If you want to be really decadent, place a chocolate chip in each of the firm, fresh raspberries.
The ganache can be much improved by adding additional chocolate, of the bittersweet and bitter chocolate varieties.