Sexy Chocolate Cake with Pistachio and Raspberry
I really wanted to make an utterly sexy chocolate cake with pistachio and raspberry flavours. I had different ideas on how to do this such as using pistachio essence to flavour cream to making a raspberry syrup and so on. However, I grew impatient and decided to keep it simple and combine these three flavours with a much less complicated effort. While I will definitely play around with this cake again, and the different ideas I had, I must say this was incredible.
This cake received a lot of compliments and it was completely gorgeous and sexy. Everything you need from a chocolate cake. The use of fresh pistachios gives a great texture to the cake and doesn't add any overpowering flavours or extra sweetness plus the raspberry jam cuts through the depth of the dark chocolate. I used 85% dark chocolate because I always find that chocolate mellows after cooking and when you're making something with this much sugar you don't need the chocolate itself to be predominantly sweet.
Begin this recipe in the morning or night before in your silk dressing gown a la Nigella and use the cooking-cooling down time to transform into the hostess with the mostest! I recommend all baking to be done in slippers and the heels saved for the fabulous afternoon tea party you can throw with this, of course, as your showstopper.
Serves: 8-10 slices
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 25-30 minutes
Assembly time: 1 hour (includes chilling time)
Ingredients:
Preheat oven to 180C.
Bring the milk to a simmer on a low heat in a saucepan. Once small bubbles and steam begin to appear take the milk off the heat and add the dark chocolate. Leave it for a few minutes and then mix together until smooth.
Mix all the dry ingredients together in one large bowl along with the pinch of salt.
In another bowl mix together the oil, eggs, yogurt, milk and vanilla extract until smooth. Then fold in the melted chocolate.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and fold together until completely smooth.
Grease two medium sized cake tins with butter. Split the batter equally between the two tins.
Bake the cakes for approximately 25-30 minutes. Check on them after 25 minutes. Cook them until a skewer/knife comes out clean if poked into the middle.
Leave the cakes to cool completely in the tin.
Bring the double cream to a simmer in a saucepan on a low heat. Once steam appears take the cream off the heat (do not boil) and add the golden syrup and the dark chocolate. Leave for a few minutes and then whisk together until smooth. Add the butter and whisk again until smooth. Sieve in the icing sugar. Add less or more depending on how loose or firm you want the icing. More icing sugar will stiffen the mix. Leave the icing in the fridge until you're ready to use. If leaving overnight cover with clingfilm and mix again before use.
Whisk the cream in a large bowl. You don't want to over-whisk and make the cream too stiff. Once it is just a bit looser than spreading consistency add the pistachios and then mix by hand. This last mix should stiffen the cream a little more so it is at the point where it doesn't run and holds it shape but is still easy to spread.
Mix the jam in a bowl to loosen it ready for spreading.
Once the cake has completely cooled, trim the tops off both cakes to remove any of the crispier tops. Use a serrated knife and keep it as level as possible. Then cut one of the cakes into two equal cakes. Cut a third off the other cake. Eat the third you've cut off while you assemble the actual cake. Why not?
Use the thicker cake as the base and place this on your serving dish/cake stand/turn-table. Spread an even layer of raspberry jam. Leave about half a centimetre around the age to help avoid any spilling over the edges. On top of the jam spread half the cream mixture. Try to keep the cream and jam as separate layers and not merge together. Place another cake on top evenly and repeat the filling. Finally place your last cake on top.
Cover the cake in a thin layer of the chocolate ganache. Make sure it is all covered evenly. Then pop the cake in the fridge for a minimum of an hour to let the ganache set. You can even leave this over night just make sure it comes back to room temperature before eating.
Dust the edges of the cake with chocolate powder. This gives a truffle like effect with ganache and the chocolate dusting. Dust the top of the cake with icing sugar and then scatter the pistachios over the top.
It may seem like a lot of effort for one cake but my gosh, its good. If you don't like nuts or have an allergy then you can completely leave the pistachios out and just use the whipped cream. I really hope you give this a go and send slices to all your loved ones. They will love you more and probably offer to do all the washing up for you too. So, tuck in your napkin and enjoy this chocolate orgasm!
Love, Rachael x
This cake received a lot of compliments and it was completely gorgeous and sexy. Everything you need from a chocolate cake. The use of fresh pistachios gives a great texture to the cake and doesn't add any overpowering flavours or extra sweetness plus the raspberry jam cuts through the depth of the dark chocolate. I used 85% dark chocolate because I always find that chocolate mellows after cooking and when you're making something with this much sugar you don't need the chocolate itself to be predominantly sweet.
Begin this recipe in the morning or night before in your silk dressing gown a la Nigella and use the cooking-cooling down time to transform into the hostess with the mostest! I recommend all baking to be done in slippers and the heels saved for the fabulous afternoon tea party you can throw with this, of course, as your showstopper.
Serves: 8-10 slices
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 25-30 minutes
Assembly time: 1 hour (includes chilling time)
Ingredients:
Chocolate Cake:
- 100g dark chocolate - 85% cocoa solids - chopped finely
- 200ml semi-skimmed milk
- 300g plain flour
- 85g good quality hot chocolate powder
- 2 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
- 1 1/4 teaspoons of bicarbonate of soda
- Pinch of sea salt
- 370g caster sugar
- 190ml vegetable oil
- 3 eggs
- 132g natural yogurt - topped up to 200g with semi-skimmed milk
- 3 teaspoons of vanilla extract
Chocolate Ganache Icing:
- 180g dark chocolate - 85% coca solids - chopped finely
- 190ml double cream
- 25g unsalted butter
- 25g golden syrup
- 100g sifted icing sugar
Filling:
- 300ml double cream
- 200g pistachios - chopped finely - don't worry about a few bigger pieces as it adds a nice crunch
- Seedless raspberry jam
To Decorate:
- 20g pistachios - finely chopped
- A dusting of icing sugar
- Cocoa powder
Method:
For the cake:
Preheat oven to 180C.
Bring the milk to a simmer on a low heat in a saucepan. Once small bubbles and steam begin to appear take the milk off the heat and add the dark chocolate. Leave it for a few minutes and then mix together until smooth.
Mix all the dry ingredients together in one large bowl along with the pinch of salt.
In another bowl mix together the oil, eggs, yogurt, milk and vanilla extract until smooth. Then fold in the melted chocolate.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and fold together until completely smooth.
Grease two medium sized cake tins with butter. Split the batter equally between the two tins.
Bake the cakes for approximately 25-30 minutes. Check on them after 25 minutes. Cook them until a skewer/knife comes out clean if poked into the middle.
Leave the cakes to cool completely in the tin.
For the ganache icing:
Bring the double cream to a simmer in a saucepan on a low heat. Once steam appears take the cream off the heat (do not boil) and add the golden syrup and the dark chocolate. Leave for a few minutes and then whisk together until smooth. Add the butter and whisk again until smooth. Sieve in the icing sugar. Add less or more depending on how loose or firm you want the icing. More icing sugar will stiffen the mix. Leave the icing in the fridge until you're ready to use. If leaving overnight cover with clingfilm and mix again before use.
For the filling:
Whisk the cream in a large bowl. You don't want to over-whisk and make the cream too stiff. Once it is just a bit looser than spreading consistency add the pistachios and then mix by hand. This last mix should stiffen the cream a little more so it is at the point where it doesn't run and holds it shape but is still easy to spread.
Mix the jam in a bowl to loosen it ready for spreading.
Assembly:
Once the cake has completely cooled, trim the tops off both cakes to remove any of the crispier tops. Use a serrated knife and keep it as level as possible. Then cut one of the cakes into two equal cakes. Cut a third off the other cake. Eat the third you've cut off while you assemble the actual cake. Why not?
Use the thicker cake as the base and place this on your serving dish/cake stand/turn-table. Spread an even layer of raspberry jam. Leave about half a centimetre around the age to help avoid any spilling over the edges. On top of the jam spread half the cream mixture. Try to keep the cream and jam as separate layers and not merge together. Place another cake on top evenly and repeat the filling. Finally place your last cake on top.
Cover the cake in a thin layer of the chocolate ganache. Make sure it is all covered evenly. Then pop the cake in the fridge for a minimum of an hour to let the ganache set. You can even leave this over night just make sure it comes back to room temperature before eating.
Decorate:
Dust the edges of the cake with chocolate powder. This gives a truffle like effect with ganache and the chocolate dusting. Dust the top of the cake with icing sugar and then scatter the pistachios over the top.
It may seem like a lot of effort for one cake but my gosh, its good. If you don't like nuts or have an allergy then you can completely leave the pistachios out and just use the whipped cream. I really hope you give this a go and send slices to all your loved ones. They will love you more and probably offer to do all the washing up for you too. So, tuck in your napkin and enjoy this chocolate orgasm!
Love, Rachael x
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