rend
watchers are telling us that while cupcakes were once all the rage, cakes are
now back in style. This is great news for us cake lovers and with the
holiday season fast approaching what could be more festive than serving this
pretty cake covered in snowy white frosting and ruby red candied cranberries.
Cutting into this fluffy icing is a treat, as you will find inside a delicious
chocolate genoise that has been soaked with a kirsch flavored syrup and filled
with chocolate mousse and more candied cranberries. I have adapted this
recipe from one in Alice Medrich's excellent book 'Cocolat' and if you are
familiar with the
classic Black Forest Cake you will see the similarities. The main
difference being that candied cranberries have replaced the cherries.
Some people shy away from
making party cakes because they seem like too much work. The key to
success with this type of cake is to make whatever components you can ahead of
time, leaving just the final assembly to the day before serving. With that
in mind, the two main components of this recipe are the chocolate genoise and
candied cranberries and both can be done well in advance. So to make
things easier, bake and freeze the chocolate genoise up to a month ahead, and the
candied
cranberries can be made up to two weeks in advance and stored in the
refrigerator. Then, a day or two before serving, all you need to do is
make the chocolate mousse, whip the cream, and assemble the dessert.
Finally, if you are not a cranberry fan,
you could substitute fresh raspberries for the candied cranberries. To
further intensify the raspberry flavor, spread a layer of
raspberry puree or even raspberry jam on the
genoise before you fill it with the chocolate cream. Then place some fresh
raspberries on top of the chocolate cream and decorate the top of the cake with
more fresh raspberries. Either version is delicious and is ideal for the
holiday season.
To Assemble the Cake:
Drain the candied cranberries,
reserving the syrup. Make a liqueur syrup by combining 1/3 cup (80 ml) of
the drained cranberry syrup
with the 2 tablespoons of Kirsch. Set aside.
Melt
the 4 ounces (115 grams) chocolate and 2 tablespoons water in a heatproof bowl
placed over
a saucepan of simmering water. Let cool to room temperature.
Set aside.
Using a serrated knife,
cut the chocolate genoise, horizontally, into two layers. Turn over the top
layer of the cake (so the top of the cake becomes the bottom) and center it on
your serving platter. Brush the layer with about 2 tablespoons
of the liqueur syrup.
Beat 1/2 cup (120 ml) of
the chilled heavy whipping cream until soft
peaks form. With a rubber spatula or whisk quickly
fold
the cream into the chocolate mixture. Immediately spread the moistened genoise layer
with the chocolate cream.
Place
enough drained cranberries evenly over the chocolate cream to cover the cream
completely. (The remaining cranberries should be placed back into the left over
cranberry syrup, refrigerated, and they will be used for decorating the top of
the assembled cake.)
Moisten the cut-side of
the second genoise layer with 2 tablespoons syrup. Place cut-side down on top of
chocolate cream, gently pressing to compact. Brush the top layer with
syrup.
Beat remaining whipping
cream with the 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and 2 tablespoons (28 grams)
granulated white sugar until
stiff peaks form. Spread a thick layer of whipping cream over top and
sides of cake. Place remaining cream in a pastry bag fitted with a large
star tip (I used a Wilton 1M tip).
Pipe large rosettes
over the entire top surface of the cake. At this point refrigerate the
cake, covered, for 24 to 36 hours before serving (this allows time
for the flavors to mingle). Just before serving, drain the reserved candied cranberries
and blot with paper towels to remove any remaining moisture, and randomly place on top of cake.
Serves 10-12.
Adapted from Alice Medrich's book Cocolat.
Components of Recipe:
-
Candied
Cranberries prepared at least three days, and up to two weeks, in advance
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