CHOCOLATE CAKE

 From Kitchen Project #124: Bûche de Noël

Ingredients:

Cake 

4* eggs, separated

80g neutral oil

80g whole milk

25g cocoa powder

1 t instant coffee granules (Nescafé)

65g AP flour

130g granulated sugar

1/4 t kosher salt

Cake Methodology:

Line a 10" x 15" jelly roll pan with parchment paper.

Preheat oven to 285°F (140°C).

Whisk together oil, milk, cocoa powder, instant coffee and 15g of flour in a small sauce pan.  Heat over low, whisking throughout, until the mixture just darkens and thickens, with the appearance of choux pastry.  Scrape into a bowl and leave to cool for a few minutes. 

Add the egg yolks to the cocoa dough and whisk until smooth and shiny. 

Add 20g of sugar and whisk to combine, until glossy.

Add the salt and the rest of the flour (50g) and mix with a spatula until smooth and thick. 

Make the meringue:  Add the egg whites to the stand mixer bowl and whisk on high for 30 seconds.  Then add the remaining sugar (110g), by the spoonful.  Turn the mixer to medium and whisk for 6-8 minutes, until a glossy, dense meringue forms.  It should be shiny and thick, but not too stiff - when the whisk is raised, it should gently flow onto itself. 

In two steps, add 75g-100g total of meringue to the cocoa dough, mixing well and being careful to scrape around the edge.

Fold in the remaining meringue in three batches, only adding the next batch once the previous one is completely combined. 

Pour into the prepared baking sheet, and smooth surface. 

Bake 35 minutes (check after 25), or until risen and dry to the touch.  It should feel springy and aerated.

Whipped Chocolate Custard Ganache

70g whole milk

220g heavy cream, divided

22g egg yolk (usually 1 large)

15g granulated sugar

75g dark chocolate, chopped finely

1/8 t kosher salt

Methodology:

Custard:

Heat the milk and 120 g cream to steaming in a small sauce pan.

In a bowl, whisk the egg yolk and sugar until combined.

Temper the egg mixture with the cream, then pour all back into the pan and heat on low, whisking, until it coats the back of a spoon (180°F, 82°C).

Pour the custard into a bowl holding the chopped chocolate and salt.  Leave for one minute, then whisk until smooth.  Cover and chill for at least 2 hours.

Once chilled, add the additional 100 g cream and whip the firmed custard until smooth and lightened in color. 

Assembly:

Cut the sheet cake into 3 equal sized pieces.  Spread filling on each layer, and then enclose and top the cake with the custard.

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Note: I have halved the custard/filling amounts, as the recipe originally made wildly more custard/filling than cake.  Like, twice as much.

*Last time I made the cake, I used 5 eggs, rather than 4 (because I didn't want to have a carton in the fridge holding only one egg!), and it turned out well.