Chocolate orange & Grand Marnier celebration cake
Viviana Di Gennaro’s spectacular chocolate orange celebration cake with cream filling - based on an old Italian recipe
Difficulty and servings
Serves 10
Preparation and cooking times
Ready in 1hr 30 mins plus chilling
- Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. To make the sponge, whisk the eggs and sugar thoroughly in a large bowl set over (but not touching) a pan of simmering water for at least 10 minutes until the mixture has thickened, light in colour and slightly frothy. Remove from the heat and whisk for another 5 minutes. Add the orange zest and gently pour in the melted butter, using a spatula to gently fold it into the mixture. Add the flour and a pinch of salt and gently fold into the mixture remembering to use slow movements. As the cake has no raising agent in it, so you need to retain as much air as possible in the mixture to ensure the cake rises well when cooked. Pour into a deep 20cm greased and lined tin and bake for 40 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.
- To make the cream fillings, beat the egg yolks with the sugar until very pale in colour, add the sieved flour and mix in the warm milk and a pinch of salt. Add the orange peel and vanilla and cook gently on a medium heat, stirring constantly. The mixture is cooked when it has thickened and you cannot taste the flour anymore.
- Pour half the mixture in a bowl, cover with clingfilm and leave to cool completely. Dilute the cocoa in 1 tbsp milk then stir into the pan with the remaining mixture and cook for a further 5 minutes, and then pour in a clean bowl cover with clingfilm and leave to cool.
- To make the buttercream, whisk the butter, icing sugar and vanilla extract thoroughly until fluffy and pale in colour. Add the orange juice and whisk until the juice has blended completely with the buttercream.
- To make the syrup put all the ingredients in a pan with 3 tbsp water, bring to the boil then cook for 5 minutes over a medium heat.
- To assemble, slice the cake horizontally into 3 circles of about 2 cm each. Take the top circle of the sponge, turn it upside down and brush the sponge with generous amount of the syrup. Spread a layer of the plain cream filling over the sponge, sprinkle with 1 tbsp of grated chocolate and 1/3 of the almonds. Add the second sponge circle on top and repeat the same process but use the chocolate cream filling instead of the plain one. Add the third sponge circle and brush generously with the syrup.
- Spread the butter cream all over the cake and smooth over with a palette knife. Put the chocolate cigarillos vertically all the way around the cake (trim to fit more level with the cake if you like).
- Decorate the top of the cake by sprinkling the remaining tbsp grated chocolate over it. Put in the fridge at for least a few hours before you intend to eat it so that it sets well and the flavours have infused the sponge.
PER SERVING
873 kcalories, protein 14.1g, carbohydrate 108.8g, fat 40.5 g, saturated fat 20.1g, fibre 40.3g, salt 0.5 g
Recipe from olive magazine, April 2012.
Leave a comment or suggestion
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/2068645/
Your binder
Sign up or sign in to receive a £60 wine voucher, and to save, rate and comment on recipes. Plus, get our newsletter.
- Please enter your email address below and we will send the relevant information to you.
Your binder
Here are three other great reasons to sign up:
- You get an online binder, where you can store all your favourite recipes and create menus.
Ingredients
- 3 heaped tbsp of grated dark chocolate
- 100g blanched almonds , toasted and chopped
- about 300g dark chocolate cigarillos
SPONGE
- 6 eggs
- 250g golden caster sugar
- grated zest of 1 orange
- 100g butter , melted and cooled
- 250g plain flour
CHOCOLATE AND PLAIN CREAM FILLINGS
- 5 egg yolks
- 150g golden caster sugar
- 40g plain flour
- 500ml warm milk
- 2 strips orange peel
- 1 vanilla pod , split, seeds scraped out
- 2 tsp cocoa powder
BUTTERCREAM
- 100g butter , softened
- 200g icing sugar
- 3 drops vanilla extract
- 2-3 tbsp orange juice
SYRUP
- 4 tbsp Grand Marnier
- 100g golden caster sugar
- juice of 1 orange
Buy ingredients
Search Good Food
The ultimate occasion cake, this beautiful indulgence will be the star of Easter or any other celebration
12
ratings
Double-the-love chocolate cake
A simple white chocolate buttercream looks great when it’s swirled over this gorgeous wedding cake – however roughly you do it
11
ratings
Difficulty and servings
Serves 10
Preparation and cooking times
Ready in 1hr 30 mins plus chilling
Ingredients
- 3 heaped tbsp of grated dark chocolate
- 100g blanched almonds , toasted and chopped
- about 300g dark chocolate cigarillos
SPONGE
- 6 eggs
- 250g golden caster sugar
- grated zest of 1 orange
- 100g butter , melted and cooled
- 250g plain flour
CHOCOLATE AND PLAIN CREAM FILLINGS
- 5 egg yolks
- 150g golden caster sugar
- 40g plain flour
- 500ml warm milk
- 2 strips orange peel
- 1 vanilla pod , split, seeds scraped out
- 2 tsp cocoa powder
BUTTERCREAM
- 100g butter , softened
- 200g icing sugar
- 3 drops vanilla extract
- 2-3 tbsp orange juice
SYRUP
- 4 tbsp Grand Marnier
- 100g golden caster sugar
- juice of 1 orange
PER SERVING
873 kcalories, protein 14.1g, carbohydrate 108.8g, fat 40.5 g, saturated fat 20.1g, fibre 40.3g, salt 0.5 g
Advertisement
Your binder
Here are three other great reasons why to sign up:
- You get an online binder, where you can store all your favourite recipes and create menus.
