Hi,
We got into the Halloween mood at CCK HQ this month!
This mouth-watering recipe we have recently experimented with comes from Paul Da-Costa-Greaves, a Masterchef of Great Britain – and the creator of our sexy chocolates
http://www.coffeecakeandkink.com/default.aspx?cp=748&item;=Chocolate!
There are still English Raspberries around, and this is a great way to use them up, so how is that for a trip to “the dark side”! This pure indulgence is just so melt in the mouth, this sensory chocolate sponge is simple yet so sensual, each mouthful along with a delicate pouring of double cream is so wrong but somehow so damn right!
RASPBERRY SENSORY CHOCOLATE SPONGE
For the syrup:
250ml water
300ml framboise (raspberry) liqueur
150g caster sugar
To make the syrup, place the water in a saucepan and bring to the boil. Add the sugar and stir until dissolved. Cool and chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Remove the chilled syrup from the refrigerator and stir in the framboise liqueur.
For the garnishing:
2 punnets of fresh raspberries
Icing sugar
350ml double cream
350gm dark chocolate 70% min, broken up into pieces
1 cinnamon stick
½ tsp mixed spice
2 star anise
½ vanilla pod scraped
Make the ganache. Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Place the cream in a saucepan, along with the star anise, mixed spice, vanilla & cinnamon and bring to the boil, then remove from the heat, strain and pour over the chocolate and stir until the mixture is smooth. Leave to cool.
For the Sponge:
150gm caster sugar
150gm soft butter(I use stalk!)
150gm plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
150gm dark chocolate
5 eggs
2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce (optional)
1 tsp mixed spice (optional)
Pre-heat oven gas 3 170c/350f – Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and place over a saucepan of simmering water, (alternatively this can be melted in microwave, 30 seconds full power and so on until melted) pop in the mixed spice and the sweet chilli, mix until melted, remove and leave to one side whilst you, Cream the soft butter & sugar until light & fluffy, gradually adding your eggs, mixing well, then fold in the sieved flour in stages along with the baking powder, then in stages fold in the melted chocolate. (optional – at this stage I sometimes put a handful of small broken pieces of dark chocolate approx 25gm) mix well, pour into a greased & lined cake tin approx 8in, springform cake tin, then bake in the oven for approx 45-55 mins, insert knife or skewer and remove cake from oven if skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool in tin.
METHOD:-
Taking your raspberry liqueur syrup pour half into a bowl and soak the 2 punnets of raspberries, Transfer the cooled ganache into a piping bag, Remove the sponge from springform cake tin, with a large knife cut in half so you have 2 discs. Wash your cake tin, dry and pop the base of the sponge back into the springform cake tin, pour over approx other half of the raspberry liqueur syrup, pipe a 3rd of the chocolate ganache over the sponge and place over the scattered soaked raspberries. Pip another 3rd of the ganache over the raspberries, and then take the 2nd chocolate sponge disc, and dip into the remainder of the raspberry liqueur syrup. Then pop this on top of the raspberries and ganache. Press down slightly, then Pipe the remaining ganache on the top of the sponge and smooth out with a palate knife, using the remaining raspberries pop on the top, then chill the cake for a approx couple of hours, remove from cake tin, dust with icing sugar and serve with regional clotted cream.
YUMMY!!!!
