‘Tales from your Kitchen’ – Mridubhashini’s Chocolate Truffle Cake

It’s a wonderful feeling the way I share a really good bond with some of the readers of the blog. Some of them have gone on to become really good friends now. One of them is Mridubhashini, who is also fondly known as Mittu. We both end up chatting on IM almost everyday, and if I don’t catch her online anytime during the day, I feel like I’ve missed doing something important that day. Sometimes, because of our schedules and the different time zones we’re located in, its like playing hide and seek with each other, but we finally manage to catch up, and it feels so good. That’s how indispensable some friends become after a while, don’t they? Specially, when those friends are so like-minded! When I announced the Chocolate Fest event for CCN’s 1st Blog Anniversary, she immediately IM’ed me saying she would send me something nice for the event. And she definitely did! Mittu, am I glad we’re friends or what? For now, I’ll be content with the pictures, but when we finally meet, Im surely getting you to make this for me 😉

Now, over to Mittu –

“This is my entry to your choco-mania fest :D!!

I made this cake for my hubby’s birthday. The first one after we got married. It was pretty eventful that time, DC area was blanketed with snow and the whole place came to a halt and stepping out was a nightmare. I sent the birthday boy himself, to go get me the ingredients so I could bake it for him 😀 Teehee! This cake is a wonderfully chocolatey and not too sweet; its bittersweet chocolate and liqueur all the way. Hic!

Here is the recipe in the order I made it:

Chocolate Truffle Cake

(Recipe Source: Cakes: 1001 Classic Recipes)

Ingredients:

For the Truffle:

• Bitter-sweet chocolate (broken into small pieces) – 1/2 cup (4 oz)
• Heavy Cream – 3 tbsps
• Unsalted Butter – 1 tbsp
• Confectioner’s Sugar – 1/3 cup
• Orange liqueur – 1 tbsp (I used frangelico, hazelnut liqueur)
• Cocoa – 1/3 cup

For the Cake:

• All-purpose flour/Maida – 2 cups
• Cocoa – 1/4 cup
• Baking powder – 1 tsp
• Baking soda – 1/2 tsp
• Salt – 1/4 tsp
• Bitter-sweet chocolate (broken into small pieces) – 1/4 cup (2 oz)
• Butter – 1/3 cup at room temperature
• Sugar – 3/4 cup
• Cream Cheese – 1/3 cup (3 oz), at room temperature
• Eggs – 2 nos, at room temperature
• Orange liqueur – 1 tbsp (I used frangelico, hazelnut liqueur)
• Vanilla extract – 1 tsp
• Water – 3/4 cup

For the Filling:

• Bitter-sweet chocolate (broken into small pieces) – 1 cup (8 oz)
• Heavy Cream – 1/3 cup
• Orange liqueur – 2 tbsps (I used frangelico, hazelnut liqueur)

For the Frosting:

• Bitter-sweet chocolate (broken into small pieces) – 1/2 cup + 2 tbsps (5 oz)
• Butter (softened) – 10 tbsps
• Confectioner’s Sugar (optional) – 1/3 cup (adjust as per taste, or avoid altogether)
• Vanilla extract – 1 tsp

Procedure:

For the Truffle:

• Melt the butter, chocolate and cream in the microwave, or on a double boiler, over barely simmering water.
• Add the confectioners sugar ( I sifted it once before adding) , liqueur until its smooth.
• Refrigerate for about 30 mins atleast.
• On a plate put about 1 tbsp of cocoa powder.
• Roll spoonfuls of mixture into small balls and dust your hands with cocoa powder and coat the balls with the cocoa powder on the plate. Refrigerate till needed.

For the Cake:

• Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Butter two 9-inch round pans and set aside.
• Into a large mixing bowl, sift the flour cocoa, baking powder, soda and salt.
• Melt the chocolate in the microwave or on a double boiler and set aside to cool.
• Beat cream cheese, butter and sugar till creamy (at medium speed).
• Add the eggs one at a time, until blended after each addition, reduce the speed to low and add in the melted chocolate, liqueur and vanilla extract.
• Add the dry mixture gradually alternating with water.
• Spoon the batter into the prepared tins and bake for 25 -35 mins or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Cool the cakes in the pan for 10 mins and remove from pans and cool on the cooling rack.
• Once cooled, cling-wrap the 2 cakes and put them in the freezer for atleast 1/2 an hour. The cake is very very fragile and when splitting, the cake could come apart. plus this way you can avoid crumbs on the frosting and filling!

For the Filling:

• Melt the chocolate and the cream in the microwave, or on a double boiler over barely simmering water. Add liqueur, stir well and set aside to cool.

For the Frosting:

• Melt the chocolate in the microwave, or over a double boiler of barely simmering water.
• With the mixer at medium speed, beat butter and confectioners sugar in a medium-sized bowl until creamy.
• Beat in the melted chocolate until glossy and smooth. Set aside

To assemble the cake:

• Slice each cake horizontally into two layers.
• Place one layer on a flat base/serving plate, and spread 1/3 rd of the filling on top of it.
• Repeat with the 2 other layers till you have one last cake layer left.
• Top with remaining layer and spread the cake with the readied frosting evenly on the top and sides, using an offset spatula.
• Decorate the cake with the prepared truffles and sprinkle with sifted cocoa.”

That looks like a very piquant dessert Mittu! Thanks so much for sharing it with us, and also for sending it over the Chocolate Fest 🙂

All you folks, Sree Vani’s Chocolate Tart is coming up next so keep those pretty peepers peeled, cos that is one big mamma of a chocolate tart. Vani, unless I get some of that tart, the giveaway book ain’t reaching you 😉 Just kidding, but I’m coming over for that tart sometime soon, so please make some for me. Oh yes, Vani and I live not too far from each other, so we like to exchange our baked goodies once in a while. Do I see your face turning green with envy? Muhuhahahaha 😉