Chocolate Cake with Soaking Syrup, Cream and Dark Chocolate Glaze

1. Our chocolate cake weighed about 1.5 kg. That is enough to serve at a festive table or to stretch the pleasure over a couple of days for the family. Though there are cases of “switching off self-control.” First take the eggs out of the fridge and boil a can of condensed milk. It is simple: put the tin can of condensed milk in a large pot, cover it with water and set it on the heat. Boil for more than 1 hour, until the milk turns noticeably brown, then cool it. Ours boiled for 1 hour 20 minutes from the start of boiling.

   

Cocoa sponge for the best chocolate cake

1. For the base we took the usual sponge batter and added cocoa powder. The batter mixture is easy to make with a mixer. Break the eggs into the mixer bowl. Add a cup of white sugar (180 g) and grate in 1 tbsp of orange zest (6 g). Whisk the eggs with the sugar until foamy and increased in volume 2.5-3 times.

   

2. In a bowl, mix the sifted flour, half a packet of baking powder and about two thirds of the cocoa powder. Stir the mixture thoroughly with a fork and add it to the eggs whisked with sugar. Mix the liquid sponge batter with the mixer until completely smooth.

   

3. We baked the chocolate sponge in a round springform pan. We usually use it for apple charlotte. Grease the pan generously with butter. Pour the prepared liquid batter into the pan, to about two thirds of its height. Put the pan in an oven preheated to 180-200°C.

   

4. Bake the chocolate sponge for 25-30 minutes. Be sure to do the toothpick test. If batter sticks to the wood when you pierce it, increase the baking time. Take the finished sponge out of the oven and let it cool. As a rule it sinks a little, which is normal. To reduce this, you can briefly dry the sponge at 150-160°C, but it isn’t essential.

   

Preparing the soaking syrup and cream

1. If you decide to make the chocolate cake from 3-4 thin layers, you can do without soaking. The cream will be quite enough. We usually cut the base into two layers and soak them before spreading. You can make the syrup to your own taste. We mixed 100 ml of water and 3 tbsp of Baileys Irish Cream liqueur in a saucepan. We added the juice of half a small orange. We brought the syrup to a boil and cooled it.

   

2. While the sponge was baking, we made the cream. It’s simple. We mixed the boiled condensed milk with Italian cream cheese mascarpone. We added all the remaining cocoa powder. The cream can be mixed with a mixer at low speed or with a whisk. It should be smooth. Since condensed milk is very sweet, we don’t add sugar to the cream.

   

How to spread the cake

1. Cut the cooled sponge horizontally into layers. We don’t use the top: it is cut off and eaten. Or you can dry it and grind it into crumbs to sprinkle on the sides and top of the sponge cake. We cut the sponge into two layers, although you can make 3-4 if you like.

   

2. Soak all the layers with the cooled syrup, simply spooning it over them. Some syrup may be left over. The sponge should be noticeably moist, but not wet. Put the bottom layer on a board or plate. By the way, a plate is better: it will be easier to spread the chocolate glaze on it, just by rocking the cake so the chocolate flows out.

   

3. Spread the first layer generously with cream. If you use two layers, divide the cream into two parts, one a little bigger. If three layers, three parts, one smaller than the others. The smaller part is for the top of the chocolate cake. The cream on the layer should lie in an even layer. A silicone or wooden spatula is handy for this.

   

4. Place the next soaked layer on the cream-covered layer. Spread it with cream. If this is the top, put all the remaining cream on it and spread it slightly domed, thinner toward the edges. Smooth the cream carefully and thoroughly so there are no ridges or dips. This matters so that the chocolate glaze lies flat and glossy.

   

Making the chocolate glaze

1. We used “black” chocolate for the glaze. The bar’s wrapper said 99%. I don’t know how true that is. But the chocolate was very dark, slightly bitter and very hard. At any rate, there was no milk in it. Pour water into a pot and make a water bath by setting a bowl on top. Break the bar into the bowl and add about 40 g of butter. Put the pot over low heat. The butter and chocolate melt quickly and easily from the bowl being heated by steam.

   

2. As soon as the chocolate and butter melt, stir them together and set aside to cool. The mixture sets very quickly, so keep an eye on it: as soon as it starts to thicken, use it right away. But it must not be hot either, or it will melt the cream.

   

3. Pour the chocolate and butter over the cake on top of the top layer of cream. Rock the chocolate cake from side to side to spread the glaze over the whole surface. Use a spatula to coat the sides evenly with glaze. The chocolate spreads easily although it is quite thick, and forms a glossy, slightly shiny surface. We don’t decorate the dessert any further and leave it as it is. You can draw a pattern with the glaze, as is done for Prague cake.

   

4. Put the chocolate cake in the fridge. It is best to leave it for at least several hours. First, the chocolate sponge will soak well. Second, the glaze will set. As it sets, the surface of the chocolate glaze may become slightly matte.

   

5. Serve the finished cake on the same plate. Cut it into pieces, trying not to crumble the chocolate. Cut the glaze vertically with a small knife to reduce the chance of cracking. How many servings you will get is hard to guess. The dessert is very tasty and you will want seconds.