French Chocolate Buttercream Cake

CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM
6 oz Semisweet chocolate, broken
-into small pieces
1 c Unsalted butter, slightly
-softened
1 lg Egg (room temp)
4 lg Egg yolks (room temp)
1/2 c Sugar
1/3 c Water
1 1/2 tb Brandy or dark rum

1. place oven rack in center of oven; heat to 350 degrees F. Butter
and flour bottoms of two 8 inch round cake pans, reserve.

2. beat eggs in large mixer bowl at high speed, one minute. Continue
beating, adding sugar very slowly, about 7 minutes.

3. melt choclate with 3/4 C butter. Drizzle warm chocolate mixture
into egg mixture, beating at low speed until blended. Add sour cream
and vanilla; beat at low speed until thoroughly blended.

4. sift together 1 1/2 cups of flour, the cocoa and baking soda. While
beating at low speed, add dry ingredients, about 1/2 cup at a time,
to the chocolate mixture alternating with the milk, about 1/3 cup at
a time. Stop as necessary to clean sides of bowl with a spatula. Beat
until well blended.

5. Pour half of batter into each reserved pan; place pans in oven
diagonally on same rack. Bake until cake tester or wooden pick
inserted into center of each cake comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes.
Cool cakes in pans on wire racks until just warm; remove from pans
and cool completely on racks.

6. Prepare CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM. Reserve about 1/2 cup of
buttercream for decorative piping.

7. To assemble cake, place 1 layer on serving plate; spread top
evenly with 3/4 cup of the firm buttercream. Refrigerate 30 minutes.
Place second layer of cake on top of first layer. Frost sides, then
top of cake completely with buttercream. Pipe reserved buttercream
through pastry bag filled with #4 star tip in a decorative border
around top of cake. Refrigerate cake until thoroughly chilled; serve
cold (keep stored in refrigerator.

CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM

6 oz semisweet chocolate, broken into small pieces 1 C unsalted
butter, slightly softened 1 large egg (room temp) 4 large egg yolks
(room temp) 1/2 C sugar 1/3 C water 1 1/2 tbsp brandy or dark rum

1. melt chocolate with 2 tbsp of the butter, reserve.

2. place whole egg and egg yolks in medium mixer bowl; beat at high
speed 1 minute, reserve.

3. measure sugar and water into 1 quart non aluminum saucepan and
stir well. Cook over low heat until mixture simmers; cover and
simmer 5 minutes . Uncover sugar syrup; simmer slowly over low heat
until it reaches the “soft-ball” candy stage.

4. While beating at high speed, immediately drizzle the sugar syrop
into the reserved egg mixture. Continue beating until bottom of the
bowl is cool to touch. Gradually beat reserved chocolate mixture and
brandy into sugar mixture until thoroughly blended.

5. Place remaining butter in small mixer bowl; beat at medium speed
until fluffy. While beating chocolate mixture at high speed, add
beaten butter, about 1 tbsp at a time. When all butter has been
added, beat for another 5 minutes. Refrigerate buttercream, stirring
every 10 minutes, until firm enough to spread. Usually takes 30 – 40
minutes. Good luck It sounds like a lot of work, but it isn’t really
~ and it is worth it!!