Belgian Chocolate Cake

By tmchambers

Rich, wonderful cake. This cake can be baked up to three days ahead; wrap well and keep at room temperature.

Ingredients

• Ganache Glaze:
• 4 ounces Hazelnuts
• 13 1/2 TBS butter (1 2/3 sticks), softened plus more for pan
• 2/3 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder, plus more for pan
• 6 TBS granulated sugar
• 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2/3 cup boiling water
• 1 3/4 cups packed dark brown sugar
• 4 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 1/3 cups buttermilk, at room temperature
• 2 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 pound bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
• 2 1/2 cups heavy cream
• Candied Hazelnuts and chocolate curls:
• 2 cups hazelnuts
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 TBS water
• 1 pound bittersweet chocolate, very finely chopped
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa

Preparation

Step 1

Cake:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread nuts in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until fragrant and toasted, about 12 minutes. Transfer to a clean kitchen towel; rub to loosen skins. Butter a 9 by 3 inch springform pan; dust with cocoa, and tap out any excess.

2. In the bowl of a food processor, grind nuts with granulated sugar until fine but not pasty. Transfer to a large bowl; stir in the flour, baking soda, and salt.

3. IN a medium heat-proof bowl. Whisk together cocoa and boiling water until smooth. (Mixture will thicken as it cools)

4. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and brown sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until well blended.

5. Stir buttermilk and vanilla into cocoa mixture. Mixing on low, add half the flour mixture to butter mixture until well blended; pour in cocoa mixture, and add remaining flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated. Scrape batter into prepared pan; smooth top. Bake 60 to 70 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven; let cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan, and cool completely. Place cooled cake on a 9-inch cardboard round.

6. Place half the ganache in a bowl set in an ice bath; whip with a balloon whisk until pale and spreadable; removing bowl from ice bath and returning it as needed.


7. Spread the whipped ganache smoothly on top and sides of cake; chill the cake in the refrigerator. Gently stir remaining ganache every 5 minutes until thickened and cool but still pourable.

8. Place cake (still on cardboard round) on a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet lined with waxed or parchment paper. Using a small ladle, pour ganache over top of cake, moving the ladle in a circular fashion and letting the ganache run down the sides. Scrape up excess, if desired, and reserve for another use. Let cake stand at room temperature until set. Garnish with candied nuts and chocolate curls.

Ganache Glaze:

Place chocolate in a large heat-proof bowl Bring cream in a small saucepan to a boil over medium-high heat; pour over chopped chocolate. Let stand 10 minute. Use a rubber spatula to gently stir chocolate and cream until well combined. Let stand at room temperature, stirring occasionally, until cooled and just thickened, 30 to 60 minutes, depending on the temperature of the room.

Candied Hazelnuts and Chocolate Curls:

1. Preheat over to 350 degrees. Spread nuts in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake until fragrant and toasted, about 12 minutes. Transfer to a clean kitchen towel; rub to loosen the skins. Bring sugar and the water to a boil in a medium-sized skillet. Stir with a fork over medium-high heat until dissolved; let boil 3 minutes more without stirring. Add nuts. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Let cool.

2. Once nuts are cool, place half the bittersweet chocolate in a large heat-proof bowl. Set over a pan of simmering water, stir until chocolate is melted and hot. Add remaining chocolate to bowl; remove bowl from pan of water and let stand about 5 minutes. Stir until smooth.

3. Pour half the chocolate onto an inverted baking sheet; spread with bench scraper until 1/8 inch thick or slightly thinner (chocolate should be opaque on surface). Let stand until just tacky. Holding scraper at a 45-degree angle, scrape chocolate off surface, forming curls.

4. While curls set, add candied nuts to remaining chocolate in bowl, and stir until coated. Spread nuts on a parchment-lined baking sheet, and let stand until set. Sift cocoa powder on top of dried nuts, and toss to coat.