Sweet Peas

Just a few Wayfarers had a Birthday Party for Marjorie this morning. That's all right. I sent some flourless chocolate cake home with Ingrid and with Marjorie. the rest came home with me and landed in the freezer. When it gets solid, I'll wrap it properly and seal it for some later date when we might need dessert. The recipe is relatively simple, just a little involved, certainly worth the effort:

Danielle's Temptation

1/2 pound butter (2 tablespoons melted)
6 1/2 oz semisweet chocolate, broken into 1/2 oz pieces
1 cup granulated sugar
9 egg yokes
4 egg whites

Chocolate Ganache

3/4 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
8 oz semisweet chocolate broken into 1//2 oz pieces

Lightly coat the bottom and sides of a 9" x 3" springform pan with butter. Line the pan with parchment paper and butter it. (I didn't have any so used a buttered circle of aluminum foil)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

Heat one inch of water in bottom half of a double boiler over medium heat. Place the remainder of the butter and 6 1/2 oz of the chocolate in the top half of the double boiler. Cover the top with film wrap. (I didn't bother to do this). Allow to heat for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from heat, stir until smooth, and hold at room temperature. (I cooled it quickly in the fridge).

Place the egg yolks and one cup of sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat on high until lemon-colored and slightly thickened, about 4 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat on high for 2 more minutes.

While the egg yolks are beating, whisk the egg whites in a large stainless steel bowl until stiff, but not dry, about 3 to 4 minutes.

Using a rubber spatula, fold the melted chocolate mixture into the beaten egg yolk mixture. Add a quarter of the beaten egg whites and stir to incorporate, then gently fold in the remaining. egg whites.

Pour the chocolate cake batter into the prepared pan, spreading evenly. Bake the cake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1 hour and 15 minutes. (During baking, the surface of the cake will form a crust; this crust will normally collapes when the cake is removed from the oven). Invert the cake onto a cardboard cake circle (or serving plate) and refrigerate for 1 hour.

To prepare the Ganache, heat the heavy cream, butter, and sugar in a 1 1/2 quart saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil. Place 8 oz semisweet chocolate in a stainless steel bowl. Pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Stir with a whisk until smooth.

Use a cake spatula (or any old spatula you have) to smooth the sides of the cake with 2 tablespoons ganache. Pour the remaining ganache over the cake, spreading with spatuala to create an even coating of ganache on both the top and sides of the cake. Refrigerate the cake for 30 minutes. If you like, decorate the top with shaved chocolate curls.

(Since it was midnight when I made this last night, I happened to make a big mistake. I beat all the egg whites and incorporated them into the batter. That's a no-no. Kedg likes to save the extra five whites to make meringues. The cake may have been a little lighter, but tasted scrumptious anyway).

When Marjorie brought me home this morning, Bobby and I stayed out and picked off all the sweet pea pods from our shriveled up vines. Now I have a pill bottle half full of seeds for planting next year...guess it will be January or February. Does anyone know when?