Subject: Chocolate Decadence
From: Unicorn (unicorn@indenial.com)
Date: Sat Feb 15 2003 - 04:35:45 EST
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FOOD FUNNY
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Thanks to "DRSPAGHETI" for wrapping up our chocolate week with style.
Chocolate is a vegetable. Chocolate is derived from cocoa beans.
Bean = vegetable. Sugar is derived from either sugar cane or sugar
beets. Both of them are plants, in the vegetable category. Thus,
chocolate is a vegetable.
To go one step further, chocolate candy bars also contain milk, which
is dairy. So candy bars are a health food. Chocolate-covered
raisins, cherries, orange slices and strawberries all count as fruit,
so eat as many as you want.
Remember, "STRESSED" spelled backward is "DESSERTS."
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TODAY'S RECIPE
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This cake was an instant success when it first appeared in the late
'70s, and it's just as good today. It's almost like eating straight
ganache, so a little goes a long way. Consider adding some whipped
cream or raspberry sauce, but dedicated chocophiles will prefer it all
by itself.
Chocolate Decadence
Butter and all-purpose flour for preparing the pan
1 lb (450 g) dark sweet chocolate, broken or cut
into small pieces
10 Tbs (150 ml) unsalted butter (no substitutions)
4 eggs
1 Tbs (15 ml) sugar
1 Tbs (15 ml) all-purpose flour
For the frosting:
2 cups (500 ml) heavy cream
1 Tbs (15 ml) powdered (confectioner's) sugar
1 tsp (5 ml) vanilla extract
Semisweet chocolate shavings for garnish (about 1 cup)
Butter an 8-inch (20 cm) springform pan, line the bottom with a circle
of wax paper, butter the paper, and dust the paper and the sides of
the pan with flour, discarding the excess. Set aside. Melt the
chocolate and butter in a heavy saucepan over low heat. Blend well
and cool. Whisk the eggs and sugar together in a large bowl set over
(not in) hot water until the sugar is dissolved and the eggs are warm.
Transfer to the bowl of an electric mixer and beat at high speed until
the eggs are cooled and tripled in volume. Fold in the flour, then
fold the egg mixture into the melted chocolate mixture. Scrape the
batter into the prepared pan and bake in a preheated 425F (220C) for
15 minutes. Cool the pan on a wire rack and refrigerate several
hours, until firm.
For the frosting, whip the cream, sugar, and vanilla until stiff.
Remove the cake from the pan and spread two thirds of the frosting
over the top and sides. Pipe the remaining frosting through a
decorative tip to form rosettes around the edge. Mound the chocolate
shavings in the center and return the cake to the refrigerator until
ready to serve. Serve in thin wedges with additional whipped cream or
raspberry sauce if desired. Serves 12 to 16.
Raspberry Sauce
1 package (10 oz, 280 g) frozen raspberries
packed in heavy syrup, thawed, juices reserved
1 Tbs (15 ml) lemon juice
Puree the raspberries and the lemon juice in a food processor or
electric blender. Press through a fine strainer. Chill in the
refrigerator until ready to serve. Makes about 1 cup (250 ml).
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