Strawberry Maria

By norsegal8

The idea for this cake comes from the one of my favorite thing to do to a strawberry before eating it: Dip it in bittersweet chocolate and then inject it with Grand Marnier. This special creation exploits the same irresistible flavor combination and was designed with love and reverence for my editor, Maria Guarnaschelli.
The torte should be assembled 4 hour to 1 day ahead.

Ingredients

• CAKE COMPONENTS
• 1 recipe Gènoise au Chocolat, top and bottom crust removed and split horizontally
• 1 recipe syrup flavored with Grand Marnier
• 1 recipe Strawberry Cloud Cream
• 1 Chocolate Lattice Band, 29 inches long and 3 inches high
• small strawberries dipped in quick-tempered chocolate

Preparation

Step 1

SPECIAL EQUIPMENT NEEDED
pastry bag to pipe the chocolate
#6 star tube

METHOD FOR ASSEMBLING THE CAKE
1. Spread a little Strawberry Cloud Cream on a 9-inch cardboard round to attach the cake.

2. Sprinkle each side of the cake layers with 3 tablespoons syrup.

3. Sandwich the cake layers with 1 1/2 cups of Strawberry Cloud Cream.

4. Cover the top and sides of the cake with the a thin layer of the Strawberry Cloud Cream.

5. Use a large number 6 star tube to and the remaining Strawberry Cloud Cream to pipe rows of shells over the entire top of the cake. Start from a middle edge and reverse the direction of the shells with each row.

6. Pipe the Chocolate Lattice Band and when it just begins to dull, wrap it around the outside of the cake, peeling back one end slightly to overlap the ends.

7. Refrigerate for 10 minutes or until the chocolate is firm enough to allow easy removal of the waxed paper.

8. Refrigerate the cake for 30 minutes to 3 hours before serving time.

9. Garnish with chocolate-dipped or plain strawberries if desired.