Truffle-Topped Heart Cake This glorious cake is a tribute to chocolate! Its a rich chocolate cake with blackberry jam and a chocolate-blackberry filling between the layers, topped with chocolate glaze and lots of chocolate truffles. This cake isn’t difficult, but it does have a lot of components—especially if you decorate it with homemade chocolate truffles! While it can be made in one day, if you have the time I recommend you split the work into two days. Bake the cakes, make the filling, and roll the truffles the first day. The second day, dip the truffles, and assemble and decorate the cake. This way you won’t be too tired to enjoy the fruit of your labors by the end! Recipe type: Cake Serves: 12-16 Ingredients For the Chocolate Cake: 8 oz semi-sweet chocolate, either baking chips or finely chopped 8 oz butter, at room temperature 5 oz (2/3 cup packed) brown sugar 2⅔ oz (2/3 cup) powdered sugar 4 eggs, at room temperature 2 tsp vanilla extract 1½ cup seedless blackberry jam, divided use 3 oz (1 cup) unsweetened cocoa powder 10⅔ oz (2½ cups) all-purpose flour 1 tbsp baking powder 1 tsp salt 2 cups milk, at room temperature For the Chocolate-Blackberry Filling: 2¾ oz (1/3 cup) heavy cream 2¾ oz (1/4 cup) seedless blackberry jam 6 oz semi-sweet chocolate, either baking chips or finely chopped 2 tbsp butter, at room temperature For the Chocolate Truffles on Top: (Ideally done 1 day in advance) 10 oz semi-sweet chocolate, either baking chips or finely chopped 8 oz (1 cup) heavy cream 1 tbsp light corn syrup 2 tbsp butter 1 cup cocoa powder 12 oz chocolate candy coating wafers (optional) For the Chocolate Glaze: 8 oz (1 cup) semi-sweet chocolate, either baking chips or finely chopped 8 oz (1 cup) heavy cream Instructions To Make the Chocolate Cake: Preheat the oven to 350. Line two 8-inch heart-shaped cake pans with parchment paper, and spray the pans with nonstick cooking spray. (Round pans can be substituted, and 9-inch pans will also work, with slight adjustments to the baking time.) Place the semi-sweet chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and heat in 30-second increments, stirring after every 30 seconds to prevent overheating. Set the chocolate aside to cool to lukewarm. Combine the butter and both sugars in the bowl of a large stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Cream them together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. The batter will probably look lumpy or broken by the end—this is okay. Add the vanilla extract, ½ cup of blackberry jam, and the cooled melted chocolate. Mix on low speed until the batter smooths out and there are no visible bits of unincorporated butter. Sift or whisk together the cocoa powder, flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl. Add a third of the dry ingredients to the mixing bowl and mix them on low just until the flour streaks disappear. Add half of the milk, then when that’s incorporated add half the remaining drys, then the milk, and finish with the dry ingredients. Finish mixing by hand, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl well. Divide the batter evenly between the two cake pans. Bake the cakes in the 350 F oven for 35-40 minutes, until a toothpick emerges with just a few moist crumbs attached. Don’t overbake, or your cakes will be dry! Allow to cool completely on a wire rack. Cakes can be made ahead of time and kept, well-wrapped in plastic wrap, at room temperature for several days, or in the freezer for several weeks. To Make the Chocolate-Blackberry Filling: Place the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl. Combine the heavy cream and blackberry jam in a small saucepan. Whisk them together and heat them until the cream comes to a simmer and bubbles appear along the edges of the pan. Pour the simmering cream over the chocolate and allow it to sit for one minute to soften the chocolate. After a minute, whisk the chocolate and cream together until the mixture is shiny and smooth. Add the room temperature butter and whisk it in. Press a layer of cling wrap on top of the chocolate and let it sit overnight to firm up, or, if you’re pressed for time, refrigerate it for about an hour until it has the texture of peanut butter. To Make the Chocolate Truffles on Top: (Ideally 1 day in advance) Place the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl. Combine the heavy cream and light corn syrup in a small saucepan. Whisk them together and heat them until the cream comes to a simmer and bubbles appear along the edges of the pan. Pour the simmering cream over the chocolate and allow it to sit for one minute to soften the chocolate. After a minute, whisk the chocolate and cream together until the mixture is shiny and smooth. Add the room temperature butter and whisk it in. Press a layer of cling wrap on top of the chocolate and refrigerate it for about 1 hour, until firm enough to scoop and roll. Pour the cocoa powder into a shallow bowl or pie tin. Use a small 1-inch candy scoop or a teaspoon to form small balls of truffles, and roll them quickly in the cocoa powder. Coat your palms with cocoa and roll the truffles between your palms to make them round. Place the round truffles on a baking sheet covered with parchment or waxed paper. Continue until all of the truffles are formed. This recipe makes about 48 truffles. If you have the time, let the truffles sit out overnight at cool room temperature to form a “skin.” This makes them much easier to dip—it means they can be dipped at room temperature, so they don’t cool down the temperature of the dipping chocolate, but the skin prevents them from melting into the chocolate and changing the texture. If you don’t have the time, simply refrigerate the truffles until firm. If you want to roll your truffles in cocoa powder, the next dipping step is optional—you can just make sure they’re totally coated in cocoa, and once they’re firm, you’re good to go. However, if you want to roll them in nuts, coconut, or other textured substances, I definitely recommend the dipping step, and of course, it can also be done with cocoa powder, if you’re curious to try it. To quickly dip the truffles in a thin layer of chocolate coating, melt the coating wafers in the microwave, stirring after every 30 seconds to prevent overheating. Let the melted coating cool until it is warm but not hot. Place the cocoa powder, nuts, coconut, or whatever else you want to coat the truffles with, in a shallow bowl or pie tin. Spoon a generous amount of coating into your palm. Place a truffle in the coating, and use your other hand to roll it around until it’s covered. Tilt your hand down so that the truffle rolls down your fingers and into the cocoa powder—this will help remove excess coating and ensure that the chocolate around the truffle is a very thin layer. Immediately use a spoon or fork to toss cocoa powder on top of the wet chocolate. Leave the truffle in the cocoa powder to firm up while you dip more truffles. Once your tin of cocoa powder is full of truffles, carefully fish out the finished truffles with a fork, place them on a baking sheet, and repeat until all of the truffles are dipped and coated. To Assemble the Cake and Make the Chocolate Glaze: Cut a piece of cardboard the size of the heart-shaped cakes, and slide it under one of the cakes to make the finished cake easy to transfer. Trim the tops of the cakes so that they are flat, and slice each cake in half. Transfer the chocolate-blackberry filling to a mixing bowl, and whip it with a whisk attachment on medium-high speed until it lightens in color and gets thick like frosting, about 1-2 minutes. Spread a layer of blackberry jam, about ½ cup, on top of the bottom layer of cake. Top it with a cake layer. Spread the chocolate-blackberry filling on the second layer of cake, then top it with a third layer. Top this layer with the remaining ½ cup of blackberry jam, then add the final cake layer on top. Scrape off any filling or jam that has squished out the sides. Transfer the cake to a wire rack set over a baking sheet, then make the chocolate glaze. Place 8 oz chocolate in a small bowl and set aside. Pour 8 oz cream into a small saucepan and heat it until it comes to a simmer and bubbles appear along the edges of the pan. Pour the simmering cream over the chocolate and allow it to sit for one minute to soften the chocolate. After a minute, whisk the chocolate and cream together until the mixture is shiny and smooth. If it seems a little thin, let it cool and thicken for a minute or two. Pour the glaze over the cake, taking care that it goes down the sides evenly and that all of the cake is covered. Let it sit for 5-10 minutes to start setting, then transfer the cake to the refrigerator to firm up the glaze completely, for about 10-15 minutes. Top the cake with the homemade chocolate truffles, and serve immediately. The cake can be assembled in advance, but for the best presentation I recommend not covering it with the glaze until shortly before youre ready to serve it. The glaze might get dull or show condensation if it’s refrigerated for an extended amount of time and then brought to room temperature. It will still taste good, but the visual impact will be lessened.
Posted on: Fri, 10 Oct 2014 14:34:45 +0000
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