CELEBRATION CAKE!!

October 16, 2013

CELEBRATION CAKE!!

Today, ladies and gentlemen, is the day that my blog reaches its 100th post. Over the last nine months, my favourite hobby has developed into a complete and utter passion and, surprisingly for me, people seem to enjoy reading about it.

To celebrate, I want to share with you a recipe that truly is fit for any celebratory occasion. This cake is a total showstopper and, though it takes a bit of time, it will be adored by all. The cake itself is an incredibly moist chocolate number, which is then painted with apricot jam, before being covered in a white chocolate ganache. To make it look extra impressive it is finally surrounded with a dark chocolate lace collar to give it that wow factor.

I served this cake for my friends at a half birthday party, half leaving again for uni farewell and I have to say they loved it - as the photos below demonstrate!

Celebration Cake!

2x deep 20cm cake tins

1x 15cm cake tin

1x 10cm cake tin

all greased and lined

For the cakes:

125g cocoa powder

200ml boiling water

6 large eggs

100ml milk

350g self-raising flour

1 tbsp baking powder

200g unsalted butter, softened

550g caster sugar

For the white chocolate ganache:

400g white chocolate

300ml double cream

300g cream cheese

6 tbsp apricot jam

For the dark chocolate lace collars:

200g 70% dark chocolate

Preheat oven to 180C/Gas Mark 4. Put the cocoa powder into a large heatproof bowl and stir in the boiling water until smooth. Lightly beat the eggs with a fork in a small bowl, just to mix, then add to the cocoa mix, together with the milk, flour, baking powder, butter and sugar. Beat with a wooden spoon or electric hand whisk until the mixture has become a smooth, thickish batter.

Divide the cake mixture among the tins so the 2 bigger tins are half full and the 2 smaller tins and two-thirds full. Spread the mixture evenly and bake in the preheated oven until well risen and the tops spring back when lightly pressed: 25-30 minutes for the 20cm cakes, 35-40 for the 10cm cake and 45-50 minutes for the 15cm cake. Check halfway through the cooking time and rotate the tins if the cakes are cooking unevenly.

Allow the cakes to cool in their tins for a few minutes then turn them out onto a wire rack. Peel off the lining paper and leave to cool completely. (They can be made up to a day ahead and kept well wrapped in greaseproof paper and foil or in an airtight container.)

While the cakes are cooling, make the white chocolate ganache. Break or chop up the white chocolate into even size pieces. Heat the double cream in a medium saucepan until just hot enough to melt the chocolate - small bubble will appear around the edge of the pan. Carefully drop the chocolate into the cream and stir until melted and smooth. Remove from the heat and leave to go stone cold.

Beat the cream cheese in a bowl to soften it, using a wooden spoon. Gradually beat in the cold white chocolate cream. Keep covered and at room temperature until needed.

To assemble the creation, cut the 10cm and 15cm cakes in half horizontally, then sandwich them back together with some of the ganache. Sandwich the two 20cm cakes together with more of the ganache. Now stack the cakes together on a cake stand or platter, the 20cm sandwich first, followed by the 15cm then the 10cm, sticking them all together with a bit more of the ganache.

Warm the apricot jam in a saucepan to melt it, then brush it all over the stacked cakes. Using a palette knife or the back of a metal spoon, spread the remainder of the white chocolate ganache all over the cakes to cover them completely.

To make the chocolate lace collars, break up the dark chocolate into equal sized pieces. Put 150g of it into a heatproof bowl, set over a pan of boiling water and stir until the chocolate melts and reaches a temperature of 47C. Remove the bowl from the heat, add the remaining chocolate and stir until smooth and it has cooled to 31C.

Cut two strips of baking paper, one measuring 10cm x 45cm and the other 10cm x 60cm. Lay the strips on the worktop, pour the chocolate into a piping bag OR use a metal spoon and, holding either the bag or spoon vertically, let the chocolate fall while moving the bag/spoon up and down, to create a lace effect on the strips of paper.

Leave these to cool for 15 minutes until just set enough to wrap around the cake tiers. The ganache on the cake should not have set completely so it will be sticky enough to help the chocolate stick. The bigger collar should be wrapped around the bottom tier and the smaller collar should be wrapped around the top tier. Leave the paper on while it cools and sets completely then peel off. DO NOT put in the fridge to set as the chocolate will lose its shine.

Store the finished cake until you are ready to serve it. This cake is best eaten on the day you assemble and ice it. I served mine with fresh raspberries.