.death by chocolate.

I completely forgot I had this recipe to post until someone emailed me asking when I will put it on the blog. Sorry about that! This is a very time intensive recipe. I made two death by chocolate for a cake auction at my church back in April to earn money for the girls for camp.


One cake sold for $70.00, the other for $50.00. Not too bad! The first year I made this, it was a much larger version and it went for a whopping $115.00!!!


There are many steps to this cake. Everything can be made days in advance and assemble the day before you want to serve it. You need to give this plenty of time to set and in fact, if you can freeze the whole thing, even better.


The first step is the brownie cake.


.brownie cake.


3 - 1oz squares unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 - 1oz square semi sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup unsalted butter
3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbsp cocoa
1/4 cup sour cream




This piece of unsweetened chocolate is from Callebaut chocolate. It's a Belgian product that is just amazing. The bar USED to be the size of my entire torso. It was hugeeee. This is all I have left. :( I need to order more, but I'm going to wait until I move to do so. You can use a knife or a chocolate fork to break the pieces off.













A food scale is a definite must for this project. You want to make sure you have the right amount of chocolate for your cake, mousses, and ganache.















Combine unsweetened chocolate, semi sweet chocolate, and butter in a double boiler. Bring water to a boil. Reduce heat to low; cook, stirring ocassionally, until the chocolate and butter melt.

Once the chocolate and butter are melted, remove from heat and set aside.

















Beat eggs, sugar, and vanilla on medium high speed until slightly thickened.

Add the chocolate mixture, and beat at medium speed until blended.











In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, salt, and cocoa.
















Gradually add to the chocolate mixture, beating until blended.


















Stir in the sour cream by hand.

I made two of these for the auction. Make sure you use only ONE pan for yours since this recipe I just posted is for one, not two. Pour your batter into a greased pan. Put in a 325* oven and bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.




When the cake is done, dump out onto a cooling rack. Let it cool completely. Wrap with saran, then foil and put in the freezer for at *least* three hours.

Now we're going to move on to the chocolate meringue.


.chocolate meringue.


4 egg whites
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1/8 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 Tbsp cocoa
1 Tbsp cornstarch



Beat the egg whiltes in a large bowl at high speed until foamy.

Sprinkle in the cream of tartar and salt.

Beat until soft peaks form.

Gradually add the sugar.

Beat until stiff peaks form. Look at how nice that looks. :)

Fold in the cocoa and cornstarch.

Make sure it is well incorporated into the egg whites.

Take the base of your springform pan and use a pen to trace around it on a piece of parchment paper. I used 8" pans for the brownie cake, so I knew I needed to use a 8" springform pan. Fill a piping bag and carefully pipe in a circular fashion within the edges on the paper.

This is what it should look like.


Put in a 225* oven for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 200* and bake for 2 hours and 45 minutes or until firm and dry.

Remove from the oven and let cool completely.






.almond chocolate mousse.




14oz semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
4oz unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup water
1 tsp almond extract
2 Tbsp cocoa
3 Tbsp plus 1 tsp meringue powder
1/2 cup water
2 Tbsp sugar
3/4 cup whipping cream, whipped



Over a double boiler, put the chocolates, 1/2 cup water, almond extract, and baking cocoa and melt until a nice sauce is formed. Remove from the heat and allow to come to room temperature.

In a mixing bowl, put the meringue powder, and the remaining 1/2 cup water.

Beat on high speed until soft peaks form. Sprinkle in the sugar.










Beat on high again until stiff peaks form.

















Add a little of the beat meringue whites into the cool chocolate. Fold in until all is incorporated.

Whip your cream until stiff peaks form, and add the same way to the chocolate.

This is what the mousse will look like. Cover with saran and put in the fridge. Allow to chill overnight.



.chocolate mousse.


6oz semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 Tbsp meringue powder
1/4 cup water
2 Tbsp sugar
1 1/2 cups whipping cream, whipped



Just like we did for the almond chocolate mousse, melt the chocolate in a double boiler. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.



Beat the meringue powder and water on high speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar, beating until stiff peaks form.



Fold the whipped meringue into the chocolate. Fold in the whipped cream.











Once the whipped cream is incorporated, cover the bowl with saran and refrigerate overnight.



Make ganache. Put 1 1/2 cups whipped cream in a saucepan and scald. Do not let the cream come to a boil. Pull from the heat when a thin skin develops on the surface.



Pour over 22 ounces semisweet chocolate chips. Let stand for a couple minutes, then stir until a nice chocolate sauce is formed.



Now it's time for assembly!



Slice the brownie cake in half. This is what happens when you don't allow it to freeze long enough. The cake kind of broke apart on me, but it's of no consequence. You won't ever see it. Put the bottom cake in the assembled springform pan.














Pour a little ganache on top of the brownie cake. Smooth it around with a spatula.

Put the baked meringue on top of the ganache. If it doesn't fit, carefully chisel away at the edges with a knife until it does.



I only had a very blurry picture of this next step, but you want to put the almond mousse on top of the meringue. You want to make sure you leave at least an inch on top free.



Put the top layer of the brownie cake on top. Cover with foil and put in the fridge or freezer (preferrably the freezer) until firm and set. Best if it sets overnight.















Heat a thin knife (such as a boning knife) with hot water and run it along the inside of the pan. Release the springform sides and lift off.



Put the cake on top of a rack on a baking sheet.

Cover the entire cake with ganache. Use a spatula to smooth it as best you can. Put in the fridge to set.

Put the chocolate mousse in a piping bag and pipe large rosettes on the top.



Transfer the cake to a cardboard round, cake plate or platter. Hold in the fridge until time to serve.


So there you have it. I think they call it death by chocolate because it just might kill you making it. LOL Kidding. It is VERY rich. A thin slice is all you need. Serve with a tall glass of milk. :)

Printable version:
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dg2vfjqm_69drjcbbt3