Happy Birthday to Me! See's Decadent Chocolate Cake

Today's my Birthday, and I just had to post this decadent recipe from See's Candies! I love See's, not only because it's a local company, but because See's really makes fabulous candy. One of the main ingredients in their chocolate candies is Guittard Chocolate, another local company. I'm on See's email list, and See's sent me a birthday email a few years ago with a recipe for Scotchmallow & Bordeaux Decadent Chocolate Cake. OMG. This is one rich and outstanding Birthday Cake.  Perfect for this chocoholic!

Here's the recipe and See's photo! I know what chocolate cake I'm making for my birthday!

Scotchmallow® & Bordeaux™ Decadent Chocolate Cake
Makes 1 Cake (8–10 Servings)

Chocolate Cake Ingredients 

• 2 cups boiling water
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2 ¼ cups white sugar
• 4 eggs (room temperature)
• 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 lb See's Custom Mix filled with
See's Dark Scotchmallows/Milk Bordeaux™ (1/2 pound of each)

Chocolate Ganache Ingredients   

• 8 oz See’s Semi Sweet Chocolate Chips
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream

Chocolate Cake Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Grease three 4–6 in. round cake pans. Line with parchment.

2. In a medium bowl, pour boiling water over cocoa, and whisk until smooth. Let mixture cool.
Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt; set aside.

3. In a large bowl, mix butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Beat in room temperature
eggs one at time, then stir in vanilla.

4. Add the flour mixture alternately with the cocoa mixture into prepared pans. Spread batter
evenly between them.

5. Bake in preheated oven for 18-24 minutes. Allow cake to cool in pans for 10 minutes.

6. Remove onto cooling rack until it reaches room temperature.

Chocolate Ganache Instructions

1. Bring heavy cream to a simmer on the stove top, stirring occasionally. Just as soon as you
see a simmer, remove from heat and poor over chocolate chips, swirling the bowl to make sure
all chips are covered.

2. Place lid on chocolate chips to trap the heat and let sit undisturbed (no mixing) for 5
minutes.

3. Remove lid and swirl the chocolate chips with a whisk starting in the center and working
outward until smooth.

4. Let ganache come to room temperature. The longer ganache sits, the thicker and more of a
frosting it becomes.

Assembly

1. Assemble cooled cake with a thin layer of chocolate ganache between each layer and 2
chopped Dark Scotchmallows®/Milk Bordeaux™ pieces (or as many as you’d like).

2. Apply a thin “naked” frosting coat over entire assembled cake. (Optional: Slightly heat the
cooled ganache in 10-second intervals at half power in a microwave. A slightly warmed ganache
makes for a smooth frosting finish.)

3. Use whole, halved and quartered candy pieces to embellish top of cake. Candies can be
stacked on wooden bamboo skewers and placed into cake for added height and drama, as well as scattered around the base.

OLIVE OIL CHOCOLATE MOUSSE: Passover or Anytime!

Still looking for another dessert for Passover? Because I often substitute olive oil for cream or butter in recipes, and because many of my readers keep kosher, olive oil dessert recipes are great to use with meat meals. And, when it comes to the upcoming holiday of Passover, here's a great recipe for Olive Oil Chocolate Mousse. It's a new take on an old recipe.

This recipe for Olive Oil Chocolate Mousse is relatively simple, and absolutely delicious. It comes from Chef Tony Maws at Craigie on Main (Cambridge, MA). The original recipe calls for brandy, but I use Kahlua. Try whatever liqueur you'd like. Make sure your olive oil is fresh. There's nothing worse than making a terrific dessert ruined because of rancid olive oil. You might make this Olive Oil Chocolate Mousse for Passover, but I'll bet you'll end up making it all year round.

OLIVE OIL CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

Ingredients
11 oz. chocolate
9 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp Kahlua
salt
9 egg whites
1/4 cup sugar

Directions
Finely chop the chocolate, and then melt over simmering water in a double boiler.
While the chocolate is melting, whisk together the yolks and ½ cup sugar until the mixture is thick in texture and a pale, lemony yellow.
Gently fold the warm (not hot--the eggs will curdle) chocolate into the yolks.
Stir in the Kahlua, olive oil, and a pinch of salt.
In another bowl, whisk the whites until they are frothy and then whisk in the sugar. Keep whisking until they are at medium peaks. Fold the whipped egg whites into the chocolate, 1/2 at a time.
Pour into glasses and allow mousse to set for at least four hours before serving.

FLOURLESS CHOCOLATE WALNUT COOKIES for Passover

Here's a recipe I posted a few years ago. Perfect for Passover -- or for anyone who's looking for a great Gluten-Free cookie.

This is a great recipe from pastry chef Francois Payard for Passover Flourless Chocolate Walnut Cookies -- or for any time -- and these cookies are Gluten-free. As always the quality depends on the cocoa! 

Flourless Chocolate Walnut Cookies

Makes about twelve 4-inch cookies

Ingredients
1/2 cup plus 3 Tbsp Dutch-process cocoa powder
3 cups confectioners’ sugar
Pinch of salt
2-3/4 cups walnuts, toasted, and roughly chopped
4 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions
Place racks in upper and bottom thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

Combine cocoa powder, confectioners’ sugar, salt, and walnuts in bowl of electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Mix on low speed for 1 minute.

With mixer running, slowly add egg whites and vanilla. Mix on medium speed for 3 minutes, until mixture has slightly thickened. Do not overmix or egg whites will thicken too much.

With 2-ounce cookie or ice cream scoop or generous tablespoon, scoop batter onto prepared baking sheet, to make cookies that are 4 inches in diameter. Scoop 5 cookies on each pan, about 3 inches apart so they don’t stick when they spread. If you have extra batter, wait until first batch of cookies is baked before scooping next batch.

Put cookies in oven, and immediately lower temperature to 320°F. Bake for 14 to 16 minutes, or until small thin cracks appear on surface of cookies. Switch pans halfway through baking. Pull  parchment paper with cookies onto wire cooling rack, and let cool completely before removing cookies from paper. Store in airtight container up to 2 days.

****

François Payard is a third generation pastry chef, who, after honing his skills by his family’s side and in the finest pastry kitchens in France, moved to New York where he was named “Pastry Chef of the Year” by the James Beard Foundation. Francois Payard has won numerous awards, such as the “Ordre du Mérite Agricole” by the French Government in 2004, he became a member of Relais Desserts International in 2006, an association of the 85 best pastry chefs in the world and in 2010 received the Dom Perignon Award of Excellence. 

Not just a chef, François is also the author of the popular cookbooks Bite Size: Elegant Recipes for Entertaining, Simply Sensational Desserts and Chocolate Epiphany: Exceptional Cookies, Cakes, and Confections for Everyone and PAYARD DESSERTS.

CHOCOLATE PECAN BROWNIE FUDGE CAKE for Passover (or any time!)

Here's a great recipe that's gluten-free, perfect for Passover, and just plain fabulous. This adapted recipe first appeared in the L.A. Times on April 14, 2011 and again in August 2012.

Instead of flour, the recipe calls for ground blanched almonds. Almond and chocolate go very well together. The almond flour gives the following cake a nutty flavor that is complemented by the Pecans! Try using different types of chocolate to achieve the flavor you like best.This cake is simple to make and easy to enjoy! Add some fresh whipped cream if you need to. I particularly like the crunchy top of this cake and the fudge-y insides.

Notes on special ingredients:

Almond Flour: Almond flour is readily available where I live, as well as online, but you can grind your own. Use a hand grinder (a clean coffee grinder) or blender. Don't use a food processor or you might end up making oil. If you use a blender, do it in small increments, about 1/2 cup at a time.

Turbinado Sugar: Turbinado sugar is a sugar cane-based, minimally refined sugar. It's medium brown in color and has large crystals. It's often mistaken for traditional brown sugar because of its light brown color, but it's made in a different way. It contains more moisture than regular white or brown sugar, so get some for your pantry. If you don't have it, and you want to make this cake today, you can substitute granulated sugar.

Potato Starch: No you don't have to make your own! Potato starch is available from Bob's Red Mill, King Arthur Flour, and many other sources. FYI: It is not the same product as potato flour.

CHOCOLATE PECAN BROWNIE FUDGE CAKE

Ingredients
1/3 cup potato starch (see my note above)
1/2 cup finely ground blanched almonds (almond flour-see note above)
1 cup turbinado sugar (in a pinch you can use granulated sugar)
Pinch salt
1/2 cup canola oil
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 1/2 ounces good-quality bittersweet chocolate (the very best quality!), melted
1 cup chopped pecans

Directions
Heat oven to 325 degrees. Grease 9-inch round or square baking pan and line with parchment paper so paper extends 2 inches beyond the pan. (Always good to ease the cake out of the pan)
In medium bowl, whisk together potato starch, ground almonds, sugar, and salt.
In small bowl, whisk together oil, eggs, and vanilla. Pour oil mixture over dry ingredients and stir together with wooden spoon until thoroughly combined and smooth. Stir in melted chocolate and chopped pecans. Pour batter into prepared baking pan. Level with frosting spatula dipped in cold water, if necessary.
Bake 25 to 30 minutes until toothpick inserted in center comes out slightly moist but without crumbs.
While still warm, cut into 8 equal pieces, leaving cake in pan. Set aside cake to cool completely, then chill.
Bring cake back to room temperature before lifting out of pan (using parchment 'handles'), and gently separate into portions.
Top with fresh whipped cream and serve!!