Easy Bake cOven: Chocolate Mousse Cake

The former " Baking Club" has found a new name. After much deliberation and voting, we are the "Easy Bake cOven". For those of you who may be completely confused by this post, I recently started a baking club with friends across the country. Our first item was Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread. We all posted to my blog since there were only 6 of us then. Thankfully we have grown in number since that post and we needed to find a more efficient way to share. We created a blog, Easy Bake cOven, for those members who don't have one of their own, and I have added the link below to group us all together. Please check out all of the entries, and visit the cOven!

Since we have this cool new way of posting, feel free to join! We will post each recipe near the beginning of the month at the cOven so make sure to check frequently, and there will be a window at the end of the month for you to add your link to your blog post here (the Lovely Lady Baker). Hopefully this will all go as smoothly as planned! We hope you enjoy reading about it!

It may seem silly to make your own Birthday Cake, but I did. Since this month's recipe was chocolate cake I decided to just make it for my birthday, which happens to be today! I don't think I have ever made a cake for myself, but I have definitely thought about it. And while I wouldn't have necessarily chosen this recipe for my cake - it was delicious enough to pass. Emily from San Francisco chose this month's recipe. (Make sure to check out her post). I read this recipe quite a few times before making it. I actually do this with most recipes so I know what steps to expect etc. and do not waste time reading the directions while baking. This recipe is fairly intense. Maybe more than fairly... it was really intense. There are a lot of steps, and if you decide to tackle this recipe I recommend splitting up your time. I think it took me about 3 hrs total to make this. One night. I had planned to split it up, but I recently got to visit my love in Hawaii, (where he has been working the past month) and returned Wednesday to bake a cake for Daring Bakers. So many cakes, so little time!

I may have slightly overcooked the cake layers. Mind you, there is so much ganache and goo and cream that if the layers were slightly dry - there would be no way to tell. I took a picture of the filling, a semisweet mousse, and didn't believe that it was going to fit. I decided not to share this photo because it too closely resembles what I imagine elephant poo to look like. I think it yields about 4 C that you are supposed to sandwich between the two layers. It did fit and I was happy for this. I also didn't have any brandy or rum on hand so I decided to take a shot of each of the liquors in our cabinet followed by a lick of raspberry to decide which was the best substitute..... haha. I really didn't do this I Promise! I just thought it would have been a good way to decide while I was washing dishes - and wanted to trick you. hope it worked. Anyways, everyone knows I prefer tequila....

Back to the cake. Since I was making it all in one evening, I sped up the cooling process with the freezer between mousse and ganache. There is so much chocolate in the cake you might be sick. I wanted to cut the cake so you could see the mousse, and of course to taste it, and all I could manage was about 3 bites. Super rich! I will attempt to share this with more than 12 people. Don't forget to check out our other contributors entries below!

Chocolate Mousse Cake

Jim Fobel's Big Flavors

Cake

8 oz semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

4 T unsalted butter

4 large eggs, separated

¼ t salt

½ c sugar divided

1 t vanilla extract

2 T all-purpose flour

Filling

1 ½ c heavy cream

2 T sugar

⅛ t salt

12 oz semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

8 T unsalted butter, sliced

2 egg yolks

2 t vanilla extract

½ c seedless raspberry preserves

2 t brandy or rum

Milk Chocolate Ganache

¼ c milk, scalded

8 oz milk chocolate, coarsely chopped

Dark Chocolate Decor (optional)

2 oz semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

2 T hot water

Garnish

Fresh raspberries and whipped cream

Make the cake layers. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Grease two 9-inch round cake pans. Line the bottoms with rounds of parchment or waxed paper; grease the paper.

Combine the chocolate and butter in the top of a double boiler over (not touching) barely simmering water. Stir occasionally until melted and smooth. Remove the top of the pan and let cool slightly, until just slightly warm, 10 to 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a large, deep bowl, combine the 4 egg whites with the salt. Beat with an electric mixer until soft peaks begin to form. Gradually beat in ¼ c of the sugar and beat until almost stiff. Reserve; do not rinse beaters.

In a large bowl, combine the egg yolks with the remaining ¼ c sugar. Beat with the same beaters at high speed until thickened and light in color, 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in the vanilla; beat in the melted chocolate mixture. Quickly stir in about 1/3 of the beaten egg whites to lighten. Sift the 2 T flour over the top and fold in gently. Fold in the remaining beaten egg whites.

Divide the batter between the 2 pans, spreading it quickly but evenly. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean; when the surface is touched lightly it will spring back when done. Cool in the pans on wire racks for 10 minutes.

Run a knife around the edges of each cake layer to loosen from the pans. Invert a plate or cardboard round over each and turn out the layers, tapping firmly, if necessary, to free. Peel off the paper and set aside to cool completely. If a layer should break, do not worry, the pieces can be put together and the filling will hold them in place. (The layers can be made well in advance; wrap tightly and freeze.)

Make the filling. In a medium saucepan, combine the cream, sugar, and salt over low heat. Bring to a simmer and keep warm.

Put the chocolate in a food processor and finely grind. Add the butter, egg yolks, and vanilla and pulse to blend. Add the hot cream mixture and blend until smooth. Turn out into a medium bowl and let cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally. Chill the filling, stirring occasionally, until firmed up and thickened but not set, about 1 hour.

Beat the filling with an electric mixer at high speed until fluffy, 20 to 30 seconds.

Assemble the cake. In a small bowl, stir together the raspberry preserves and brandy or rum. Place 1 cake layer upside down on a serving plate. Spread the top with half of the raspberry glaze. Turn all of the chocolate filling onto the cake and spread into an even layer. Spread the remaining raspberry glaze over the bottom of the second layer. Invert the layer over the chocolate filling. Hold a spatula vertically, even the filling all around the edge. Cover the cake with plastic wrap and chill until set, 1-2 hours, or as long as over night.

Make the milk chocolate glaze. Combine the milk and milk chocolate in the top of a double boiler and place over barely simmering water. Stir occasionally until melted and smooth. Remove the plastic wrap from the cake. Spread all of the warm milk chocolate glaze over the top and let it run down the sides, smoothing with a spatula to coat and chill until set.

Make the dark chocolate glaze. Combine the semisweet chocolate with 2 T hot water in the top of a double boiler. Let stand until the chocolate melts and then stir until smooth. Turn the chocolate into a small plastic zip-lock bag or make a small, parchment paper cone and fill with the chocolate. Snip a 1/16–inch hole at one corner of the plastic bag or at the tip of the cone. Beginning in the center of the cake, decorate the top with a tight spiral design. Make small chocolate dots all around the outer edge and one in the center. Chill until set. Note: I did not add water and used only 1 oz dark chocolate for my decor. I usually do not add water to chocolate as this can ruin it really easily - Instead, I use shortening. I didn't this time since it was such a small quantity, but usually I add about a 1/4 tsp to 2-3 oz chocolate.

To serve, cut into 12 wedges and lift off slices with a spatula. If desired, decorate each with fresh raspberries and a dollop of whipped cream.