Cake For The Grown-ups

[Jnkmnky]

My kids and I are making a flourless chocolate torte recipe we found *because Wholefoods didn't have theirs raspberry chocolate torte in today when I went to get it.... Anyway, I found a good recipe for the kids but then found this one for ME. Yum. I plan to make it tomorrow while they're at school. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Chocolate Espresso Truffle Cake

1 cup boiling water

1 tablespoon instant espresso powder

1 pound (2 cups) unsalted butter

1 cup granulated sugar

1 pound bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

8 large eggs, slightly beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla

Ganache

1/2 cup heavy cream

5 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Coffee Whipped Cream

1 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar

2 tablespoons Kahlua

To bake the cake, position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350F. Lightly butter a 8 1/2-inch springform pan. Line the bottom of the pan with waxed paper.

In a large saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Stir in the espresso to dissolve. (Or use 1 cup hot brewed strong coffee, such as a French or Italian Roast, but not pressure-brewed espresso.) Add the butter and sugar. Over low heat, cook and stir to melt the butter. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate. Let stand until the chocolate softens, then whisk until smooth.

In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and vanilla. Stir the eggs into the chocolate. Spread into the pan.

Bake until toothpick comes out of center clean, 45-50 minutes. Cool completely. Invert onto a rack, and peel off the waxed paper. (Depending on the look of the top of the cake, you may prefer to glaze the cake upside down, if the bottom is smooth and looks better than the top.)

To make the ganache, in a small saucepan, bring the cream to a simmer. Place the chocolate in a bowl and add the hot cream and butter. Let stand for 3 minutes to soften, then whisk until smooth. Let stand until the glaze thickens slightly, about 15 minutes. Pour the warm glaze over the cake. Use a metal spatula to coax the glaze over the top and sides. Chill for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Remove the cake from the refrigerator about 1 hour before serving (this will encourage the glaze to shine--otherwise it might be a little streaky from the butterfat in the cream).

To make the cream, beat the cream and confectioners' sugar until pretty stiff. Fold in the Kahlua.

Cut the cake with a wet, hot knife, and serve the cake with the coffee cream.

[Guest gfinnebraska]

YUMMY!!! Thanks for the recipe! I know what I am making for MY next b-day!!

[Jnkmnky]

I used orange flavored stuff instead of khalua. It came out really good. A small sliver of cake is all you can eat. It's so filling. I'm going to my friend's house for dinner and bringing the Khalua version... hopefully, the second cake will look nicer than the first. My first was kinda messy looking. but tasted great~!