It’s time for dessert.  Let’s indulge in some chocolate.  It was a rainy day here in Philadelphia, Pa and I felt like baking.  I was craving something chocolate yet different.  I went  with a chocolate cake.  I was thinking of what filling I could make for it, and came up with a Meringue filling.  The frosting was a delicious chocolate ganache. This is such a moist cake and that bit of meringue gives it that little crunch.  I hope you enjoy this with a nice cold glass of milk, tea, a cup of coffee or even a nice glass of red wine.

Ingredients:

3/4 Cups of Butter (room temp)

3 Eggs (room temp)

2 Cups of All Purpose Flour

3/4 Cups of unsweetened coca powder

1 teaspoon of baking soda

3/4 teaspoon of baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups of Sugar

2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups of milk

Preparation:

Grease the bottom of round cake pan. Lightly dust the pan with flour. Set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl stir together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt;  Set aside.

In a large bowl beat the butter for about 30 seconds. Gradually add the sugar until well combined. Scrape the sides of the bowl; beat for another minute. Add an egg at a time. Beat in Vanilla. Slowly start to add the flour mix and some of the milk. Beat until everything is well combined. Spread into pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes.

When done place on cooling rack for about 30 minutes.  Cut in half horizontallyand add the meringue then place the other half back on. 

Afterwards begin to frost your cake.

Meringue and Hazelnuts:

Ingredients:

3 large egg whites, at room temperature

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

2/3 cup superfine granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup of Hazelnuts (or your choice of nuts)

Preparation:

In the bowl beat egg whites until foamy. Add the cream of tartar and beat until fluffy (Be careful not to over beat.) Add the sugar slowly,When 1/2 of the sugar has been added, add the vanilla extract. Continue beating and adding remaining sugar, until all of the sugar is dissolved and the meringue is very shiny and has formed peaks. On a baking sheet gently make a circle like form on parchment paper, until it is round like your cake. Place hazelnuts on top of meringue or you can fold them in slowly. Preheat oven to 300 degrees for about 1 hour. When done turn off the oven and let it sit in there for another 30 minutes.

Chocolate Ganache:

1 Cup of whipping cream

12 Ounces of Semi Sweet or Milk Chocolate, chopped

In a medium saucepan bring whipping cream to just about a boil over medium heat. Remove from heat and add the chocolate do not stir let sit for about 5 minutes. Stir until nice and smooth. Cool for about 15 minutes before placing it on cake.

Top with some confectioners sugar, if desired.

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