Perfect Recipe

Chocolate Pudding Cake With Chocolate Ganache

Ingredients:

For the Cake:

8 Eggs, separeted
1 Cup Sugar
1/2 Cup Unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 Cup all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp Baking powder
1 Tbsp Baking soda
3/4 Cup Grand Marnier

For the Pudding:

4 Cup Heavy cream
1/2 Cup Cornstarch
1 Cup Sugar
5 Ounce Semisweet chocolate chips
2 Teaspoon Pure vanilla extract

For the Ganache:

2 Cup Heavy cream
1-1/2 Pound Semisweet chocolate squares; chopped

Directions:

For the cake:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter two 9-by 2-inch round cake pans and coat each with flour.
In a large mixing bowl of a standing mixer, fitted with whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites until they form firm peaks. Continue mixing, and add the egg yolks one by one. Then gradually add the sugar while whisking and whisk for a couple of minutes. In a separate, large mixing bowl, sift together the cocoa, flour, baking soda and baking powder. With a spoon, fold cocoa mixture into the egg mixture to combine completely, until mixture is smooth. Divide cake batter evenly between 2 cake pans. Bake for 25 minutes, or until cake springs back when touched. Cool cakes for 15 minutes. Loosen cakes from pans with an offset spatula, and unmold onto wire rack. Cool to room temperature.

For the Pudding:

Combine 1/2 cup of the cream with the cornstarch in a small bowl and stir to make a paste. Combine paste with remaining 3 1/2 cups cream, sugar, chocolate chips, and vanilla in a large nonstick saucepan. Using a wire whisk, stir the mixture until it is well blended. Over low heat, whisk cream mixture until chocolate melts thoroughly. Cook the mixture, stirring frequently, until it becomes very thick, about 25 minutes. Pour pudding into a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, covering surface of pudding with the plastic to prevent a skin from forming. Let cool to room temperature.

To Assemble the Cake:

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place a wire rack over it. Using a serrated knife, cut each cake in half horizontally. (If necessary, shave off any uneven pieces of cake with a serrated knife so that it is smooth and even on all sides.) Brush the tops of three layers each with 1/4 cup of the Grand Marnier. Place the bottom layer on a 9-inch round of cardboard and set it on the wire rack. Spread 1 1/2 cups of the pudding evenly on top of the layer. Top with a second layer of cake. Spread 1 1/2 cups of pudding evenly over it. Repeat the same process with the third layer. Top with the fourth layer. Chill in the refrigerator for 2 hours.

For the Ganache:

In a medium-sized nonstick saucepan over medium heat, heat cream just under boiling point. Remove from heat and add chopped chocolate. With a whisk, stir until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is smooth. Pour ganache over the top of chilled cake, allowing overflow to drip down the sides. Cool slightly. Carefully remove the cake from the wire rack. Chill for at least 6 hours.

Spaghetti alla Carbonara

Ingredients:

500 g spaghetti
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
200 g pancetta or slab bacon, cubed or sliced into small strips
300 ml heavy cream
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
3 eggs
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more for serving
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

Prepare the sauce while the pasta is cooking to ensure that the spaghetti will be hot and ready when the sauce is finished; it is very important that the pasta is hot when adding the egg mixture, so that the heat of the pasta cooks the raw eggs in the sauce.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender yet firm (as they say in Italian “al dente.”) Drain the pasta well, reserving 1/2 cup of the starchy cooking water to use in the sauce if you wish.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a deep skillet over medium flame. Add the pancetta and saute for about 3 minutes, until the bacon is crisp and the fat is rendered. Toss the garlic into the fat and saute for less than 1 minute to soften.

Add the hot, drained spaghetti to the pan and toss for 2 minutes to coat the strands in the bacon fat. Beat the eggs and Parmesan together in a mixing bowl, stirring well to prevent lumps. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the egg/cheese mixture into the pasta, whisking quickly until the eggs thicken. Thin out the sauce with a bit of the reserved pasta water, until it reaches desired consistency. Season the carbonara with several turns of freshly ground black pepper and taste for salt. Mound the spaghetti carbonara into warm serving bowls. Pass more cheese around the table.