Directions

• As we well know, especially when it comes to such doughs, it is very important that the ingredients are at room temperature. Eggs, because they will make our dough super fluffy, they must be kept at room temperature for at least 2 hours before using them. There are many who say that you can use them directly, I tried several times due to lack of time and the cake tops did not turn out as fluffy and airy. So, in conclusion, manage your time very well before making a cake that you want to decorate at home.
• This recipe is as simple as possible and the beautiful part is that it does not require who knows what measuring tools. We will go with the classic “old school” version in which the spoon was a powerful tool for measuring the ingredients. We separate the egg yolks into two different bowls. We start by whipping the egg whites together with the sugar, which we gradually add.
• Using a strainer, sift the flour, baking powder and cocoa over the egg mixture. I advise you to incorporate the dry ingredients with the help of a spatula, with wide movements from bottom to top, until the entire composition is homogenized.
• Add ground walnuts and citrus peels (I used dried orange and lemon peels, but you can use fresh if you use untreated citrus) and just as easily I incorporated these as well. Now is the time, if you want to add other flavors that you like, such as vanilla or a good liqueur.
• I chose to use a round cake pan with a removable bottom. I put baking paper on the bottom and greased the walls with oil, then sprinkled with flour. I poured the composition into the mold and put the tray in the oven preheated to 180 degrees for 30-35 minutes.
• While the dough is baking, prepare the cream, the berry jelly and the syrup in turn. All 3 require cooling time so you can also prepare them the day before if you want. Let’s start with the fruit jelly. We put the frozen berries in a saucepan, add sugar and boil on low heat until the liquid evaporates. Add the lemon juice and boil for another 5 minutes, then turn off the heat and leave to cool. You can use the blender if you want a creamier jelly, I preferred to leave it like this with almost whole pieces of fruit.
• For the syrup, squeeze the oranges, add water and sugar over the obtained juice and boil on low to medium heat for 15 min. We leave the obtained syrup to cool, we will infuse the chocolate cake with it. f you wish, you can also add fresh orange peel or a little vanilla to the syrup.
• Next on the list is the chocolate cream, which requires the longest cooling time. Prepare the chocolate pudding according to the instructions on the package, then pour it into a bowl and cover it with cling film to avoid the formation of lumps on the surface.
• In a bowl, beat the cream with the help of a mixer and leave it aside. In the well-chilled chocolate cream, add the soft butter at room temperature and mix with the mixer until all the butter is incorporated. Then we add a little bit of the whipped cream and mix until we get our delicious chocolate cream with whipped cream. Be very careful that the chocolate cream is very cold when you add the whipped cream, otherwise you will spoil all the cream.
• Great, now that everything is ready, all we have to do is assemble the cake with chocolate and berries. We start by cutting the top into 3 approximately equal parts. We place as with any cake, first the top part, that is, this will be the base of the cake, and the bottom part will come on top, being the part with the straightest surface and it will be easier to decorate, but the cake will also have a nicer appearance.
• Look how beautiful the cake is inside! Fluffy and full of nuts. I used a small ladle to pour the syrup because I knew exactly how much to put, but it’s best to put with a spoon gradually, about 8-10 spoons of syrup. We add 2-3 spoonfuls of berries in the middle and gently stretch towards the edges without pressing too hard with the spoon.
• On top of the berries, add about a quarter of the chocolate cream with whipped cream, spread well but gently over the entire surface. If it is easier for you, divide the cream from the beginning into 3 parts, keeping in mind that you will need a little cream for the decoration as well.
• We continue and repeat the process with the second layer, add syrup, berries, cream and cover with the last part of the top. We poke this with a skewer from place to place so that the syrup enters easily and does not pool in one place on the surface.
• We use a knife with a wide blade or a spatula to nicely smooth the edge of the cake. I added a little cream on top and gave it a slightly wavy appearance. Separately, I put 150 g of dark chocolate and 200 ml of liquid cream in a bowl. I kept everything in the bain marie until the chocolate melted and a glaze resulted.
• I poured the warm glaze in abundance, on the edges of the cake. Then very quickly, so that the chocolate does not harden, I decorated the sides with ground walnuts. This will stick to the chocolate glaze, the important thing is to have everything at hand and to move quickly.
• On top, decorate with chocolate candies in different shapes. Keep the cake in the refrigerator for at least 3-4 hours, but ideally overnight. It is a cake with a lot of chocolate, with the aroma of citrus fruits and the sour taste of forest fruits. All balanced in an elegant note, to successfully ennoble a completely homemade cake. Enjoy!