double chocolate valentine
Do me a favor and click to see the large version of this picture. Please.
I don’t really care for Valentine’s Day, but once I saw the recipe, I couldn’t resist making this rich, fudgy, chocolate cake. I just can’t stop baking from this cookbook. The cakes that come out have great texture and flavor and the pairings with frostings and glazes are spot on. If you are looking for a cake recipe book to buy, this one is it. Just stock up on eggs and butter and renew your gym membership first.
Double Chocolate Valentine from Rose’s Heavenly Cakes
| ingredients | volume | weight | metric weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| unsweetened alkalized cocoa powder | ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon | 1.5 oz | 42 grams |
| boiling water | ½ cup | 4.2 oz | 118 grams |
| ~4 egg yolks, room temperature | 1/4 cup plus ½ tablespoon | 2.6 oz | 74 grams |
| water | 3 tablespoons | 1.5 oz | 44 grams |
| vanilla extract | 3/4 teaspoon | ||
| cake flour or AP flour | 1 1/3 cup | 5.5 oz | 156 grams |
| baker's sugar | 1 cup | 7 oz | 200 grams |
| baking powder | 2½ teaspoons | ||
| salt | ½ teaspoon | ||
| unsalted butter, room temperature | 9 tablespoons | 4.5 oz | 128 grams |
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a 9 x 2 cake pan with a cake strip, coat the bottom with a thin layer of shortening and top with a sheet of parchment cut to shape. Butter and lightly flour the inside. Turn the cake upside down and tap to remove excess flour.
Whisk together the cocoa and boiling water until smooth and cover and let cool to room temperature. Whisk together the egg yolks, the 3 tablespoons water and the vanilla until just combined and set aside.
In a large bowl, beat together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt until well combined and any clumps are broken up. Add the butter and the cocoa mixture and slowly increase the speed to medium and beat for 1½ minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl as necessary. The batter should be light and fluffy.
Add half of the egg mixture and beat for 30 seconds, then the other half and beat for another 30 seconds. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a cake tester comes out clean and the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the center, about 30-40 minutes.
Ganache Glaze
| ingredient | weight | metric weight |
|---|---|---|
| dark chocolate (60-62% cacao), chopped | 3 oz | 85 grams |
| heavy cream | 6 oz | 174 grams |
Scald the cream and pour it into a bowl over the chopped chocolate. Whisk until smooth and set aside. By the way, if you taste the ganache glaze by itself, it will seem a little too dark. Paired with the cake though, the two complement each other beautifully.
When the cake comes out of the oven, poke holes into the top and brush half of the glaze onto the cake. Wait 10 minutes and flip the cake onto a flat surface covered with plastic wrap. Remove the parchment paper and brush the remaining glaze onto the cake. Cool until the chocolate is firm to the touch, at least 1 hour.
If the chocolate is set you can now transfer the cake by flipping it onto a flat, plastic-wrapped plate, and then again onto your final cake destination*.
Cover the cake with fresh raspberries (one of the perks of living where I do is that fresh raspberries are available at the farmer’s market in February) and dab with warmed red currant jelly.
*Final Cake Destination would be an awesome movie. Or a truly terrible one.
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Serious food porn!!!:) I loved the pic, and now I can’t wait to bake this cake!:)
btw, I’d love to invite you to send these in for my Valentine day giveaway on my blog:) details at:
http://www.funandfoodcafe.com/2010/02/valentine-super-bowl-recipe-carnival.html
Beautiful!! This really sounds like a great dessert!!
Nice job. The Heavenly Cake Bakers (baking our way through Rose’s Heavenly Cakes) will be baking this cake for Valentine’s Day. You can check my blog on Monday if you’d like to see my take.
Nice visiting your blog!
ButterYum
I thought about joining Heavenly Cake Bakers the last time you posted but I don’t know if I will be able to maintain the baking pace. Enjoy your Double Chocolate Valentine and I’ll definitely check in on Monday to see the results.
I obeyed your command and clicked on the photo. Now I must make this because I won’t be able to get it out of my mind. BEAUTIFUL!!
i dont care for gym memberships so just give me a slice of that already! haha. i dont care for valentine’s either but omg, that cake just looks sooo gorgeous:)