It seems the holidays just passed, and now it's time to gear up for Valentine's Day. If you want to make something really special for your Valentine, or for your family, expressing your love and appreciation, here are a couple of ideas for you.
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| Flourless Chocolate Torte with Strawberry Buttercream |
The cake is flourless, and uses finely ground nuts to give it body. I have made this
cake many times before, and it is the most decadent cake I have
ever had. It may take a little
time to make, assemble and chill, but the cake layers can
be made ahead of time and refrigerated for a couple of days or frozen
for up to 3 weeks if needed, and gotten out when the time comes for assembly.
Either
cake can be made this way. Both are best if kept refrigerated, as
slicing is far easier. The first cake is the original I used, and the
second is the one I made into the Chocolate Hazelnut Cake with Chocolate
Hazelnut Mousse Filling.
Flourless Chocolate Torte with Strawberry Buttercream
Makes one (4-layer) 9-inch torte, about 16 servings
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| Flourless Chocolate Torte with Strawberry Buttercream |
CAKE:
¾ cup unsalted butter
2 cups granulated sugar
8 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
¼ teaspoon salt
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted
3½ cups pecans, finely ground
STRAWBERRY BUTTERCREAM FILLING:
2½ sticks unsalted butter, softened
2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
½ cup fresh strawberries, pureed
3 tablespoons strawberry preserves
CHOCOLATE GLAZE:
3 ounces semisweet chocolate
½ cup water
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons safflower oil
¾ cup cocoa powder, unsweetened
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
FOR DECORATION:
8 whole strawberries of equal size, cut in half lengthwise
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter four 9-inch round pans. Line the bottoms with parchment; butter parchment.
Cream butter till light. Add sugar; beat until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add vanilla and salt. Using a rubber spatula, stir in the chocolate and then the pecans. Divide the batter between the four prepared pans. Bake until a tester inserted in the center comes out fudgy, but not wet, about 22 minutes. Tops may crack. (If you do not have four 9-inch pans, bake two layers, turn out onto racks, wash and re-use the pans for the other two layers).
Cool in the pans on a rack for 5 minutes. Run a knife around the edges of the pans. Invert cakes onto a rack to cool. Remove and discard parchment. The cake layers can be made up to 2 days in advance. Wrap each layer separately in plastic wrap and refrigerate.
PREPARE STRAWBERRY BUTTERCREAM: Using an electric mixer, cream butter and confectioner's sugar till light and fluffy. Add in pureed berries and preserves. This can be prepared in advance and covered and refrigerated. To use, soften at room temperature until spreadable.
Arrange 1 cake layer, bottom side up, on a 9-inch cardboard round, if possible. If no cardboard round is available, place cake on a cake plate, sliding strips of waxed paper under the edges of the cake to keep the plate neat while glazing. Spread ⅓ cup of the buttercream over the layer. Top with another cake layer and repeat. Do this once more, and then top with the last cake layer, bottom side up. Pat layers to make them even. Cover and refrigerate at least 6 hours. If necessary, cut the edges of the cake with a serrated knife to make them even.
PREPARE CHOCOLATE GLAZE: Heat the chocolate with the water, butter and safflower oil in the top of a double boiler over gently simmering water till chocolate melts. Remove from heat and add the cocoa powder and the ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar and stir until sugar dissolves and the glaze is smooth. Let cool until thickened, but pourable. Can be prepared one day ahead and refrigerated. Bring to room temperature to use.
If the cake was placed on a cardboard cake round, place on a rack with waxed paper beneath to catch drippings. If not on cardboard, place strips of waxed paper under cake edges before glazing. Pour the glaze over the cake, smoothing over sides and top. Discard waxed paper strips, if used.
Cake can be prepared to this point one day in advance and refrigerated. Remove from fridge and let stand at room temperature for one hour before serving. When ready to serve, top the cake with 14 to 16 strawberry halves, placed with pointy ends toward center. Each slice should have one strawberry half on top.
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I made this second cake many years ago, for my son and his wife, at that time. The cake was their idea, and I made their idea come to life. They were huge fans of chocolate and hazelnut, so everything was to be chocolate and hazelnut flavors. I already had a most amazing cake recipe, so I adapted it to work with hazelnuts rather than pecans. I made a chocolate and hazelnut mousse to put between the layers, and a chocolate ganache, flavored with Frangelico to pour over the finished cake.
The one problem I ran into was the assembly. I wanted to assemble the cake in a spring-form pan, while it set, and then remove the rim. However, while I used 8-inch cake pans to make the cake, it is not easy to find an 8-inch spring-form pan. If it says it is 8-inch, in actuality, it is 8½-inch. I had to special order the spring-form. Ultimately though, I feel that the spring-form rather ruined the look, as the mousse ran into the edges anyway. But, it was fabulous. It was beautiful. It was absolutely decadent. It was delicious. What more can one ask?
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| Chocolate Hazelnut Cake with Chocolate
Hazelnut Mousse Filling |
It only made sense to use it for this application. As for the mousse, adding some hazelnut spread and Frangelico to give the right flavor, was simplicity itself. The ganache topping was also simple.
Chocolate Hazelnut Cake with Chocolate
Hazelnut Mousse Filling
Makes one (4-layer) 8-or 9-inch torte, about 12 to 16 servings
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| Chocolate Hazelnut Cake with Chocolate
Hazelnut Mousse Filling |
CAKE:
¾ cup unsalted butter
2 cups granulated sugar
8 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
¼ teaspoon salt
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted
3½ cups hazelnut meal
CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT MOUSSE:
1 teaspoon unflavored gelatin
3 tablespoons cold water
½ cup chocolate hazelnut spread (Nutella)
½ cup mascarpone cream (4-ounces)
1½ cup heavy cream, very cold
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons Frangelico (hazelnut liqueur)
CHOCOLATE GANACHE:
¼ cup heavy cream or whipping cream
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate or ½ cup bittersweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon Frangelico (hazelnut liqueur)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
CAKE: Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter four 8- or 9-inch round pans. Line the bottoms with parchment; butter parchment.
Cream butter till light. Add sugar; beat until light and fluffy. Beat
in eggs, one at a time. Add vanilla and salt. Using a rubber spatula,
stir in the chocolate and then the hazelnut meal. Divide the batter between the
four prepared pans. Bake until a tester inserted in the center comes
out fudgy, but not wet, about 22 minutes. Tops may crack. (If you do not
have four 8-inch pans, bake two layers, turn out onto racks, wash and
re-use the pans for the other two layers).
Cool in the pans on a
rack for 5 minutes. Run a knife around the edges of the pans. Invert
cakes onto a rack to cool. Remove and discard parchment. The cake layers
can be made up to 2 days in advance. Wrap each layer separately in
plastic wrap and refrigerate.
CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT MOUSSE: Sprinkle gelatin over the cold water in a small, heavy saucepan and let stand until softened, about 5 minutes. Heat gelatin mixture over low heat, stirring, just until gelatin is melted, about 2 minutes. Do not let the gelatin boil. It must only melt. Whisk in chocolate hazelnut spread until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside.
Place the gelatin and hazelnut mixture into a large bowl. In another bowl, with an electric mixer, beat together the heavy cream, cocoa powder, and sugar at low speed to combine, then increase speed to high and beat until cream just holds soft peaks. Whisk ⅓ of whipped cream into mascarpone mixture to lighten, then fold in remaining whipped cream until well combined and no white remains. Chill the mixture until it starts to hold shape.
Set one of the cake layers bottom side upwards onto a cake plate. Spread ⅓ of the mousse onto this layer evenly to the edges. Set the next layer on top, keeping sides neat and even. Spread a second ⅓ of the mousse evenly on this layer. Repeat with the third layer and the last ⅓ of the mousse and then top the cake with the last cake layer. Cover and refrigerate the cake for at least 6 hours to firm up.
MAKE THE GANACHE: In a medium saucepan, bring the ¼-cup of heavy cream and the Frangelico just to a simmer over medium heat. Do not boil, but it must be hot. Remove from the heat and add in the chocolate, stirring until completely melted and smooth, then add in the butter, in small pieces, stirring until melted. Cool the ganache to a thick but still pour-able consistency and pour over the cake, spreading to cover the top and artfully drizzle down the sides. The cake is best chilled, though the ganache will lose its shine.
My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.
