INGREDIENTS
- 6 nos Eggs
- 250 gms Caster Sugar
- 50 gms Cocoa Powder
- 100 gms Refined Flour
- 150 gms Unsalted Butter
- 150 gms Dark Chocolate
- 45 gms Raspberry Preserve
- 40 nos Pitted black or red Cherries
For The sugar syrup
- 175 gms Caster Sugar
- 15 ml Kirsch (Cherry Brandy)
Chef of the day: Rukiya Shiza( BCT&CA 2nd year)
For the Filling Cream
- 750 ml Whipping Cream
- 100 gms Caster Sugar
- 5 ml Vanila Extract
- 35 ml Kirsch ( or any Brandy)
Method
- First, make the sponges. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease 3 x 22cm-diameter sandwich cake tins and line the bases with baking paper.
- In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, vanilla and sugar together using an electric hand whisk until thick and the whisk leaves a trail – it will take about 10 minutes. Sift the cocoa powder and flour together, then fold in. Stir in the melted butter.
- Divide the cake mixture between the tins and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until springy to the touch. Cool in the tins for 5 minutes, then turn out on to a rack to cool completely.
- Shave the block of chocolate using a potato peeler or by scraping the blade of a kitchen knife across the surface. Chill the shavings.
- To make the syrup, put 200ml water and the sugar in a pan; bring to the boil for 5 minutes. Leave to cool; stir in the kirsch. To make the kirsch cream, whip the cream and sugar to firm peaks, then fold in the vanilla and kirsch.
- To assemble the cake, level the tops of the sponges using a sharp knife, if necessary. Place a little kirsch cream on a serving plate and secure one of the sponges on top. Brush the sponge with some of the syrup; spread over the raspberry preserve.
- Sandwich together with a second sponge and brush again with the syrup. Spread over a layer of the kirsch cream, about 1cm (½in) deep. Cover with the cherries, reserving 8.
- Spread a little more cream over the cherries, then top with the final sponge, upside down, to give an even, flat top. Brush with syrup.
- Spoon a quarter of the remaining cream into a piping bag fitted with a large star nozzle; set aside. Using a palette knife, cover the top and sides of the cake with the rest of the cream.
- Stick the chocolate shavings over the sides of the cake with your palm. Pipe around the edge of the cake and 8 swirls in the middle; place the reserved cherries on the swirls.