This is a fabulous tasting cake and very easy to make!
I wanted a smaller cake so I cut the recipe in half.
12 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), chopped-Ghirardelli is gluten free
6 tablespoons water
12 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
1 1/3 cup sugar (I use xylitol)
½ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons Dutch-processed unsweetened cocoa powder-Saco premium cocoa is gluten free
For filling:
2 cups heavy cream
6 tablespoons confectioners sugar, sifted (I put xylitol in my magic bullet and whipped it until it was a powder, you can also use a blender)
4 Tbs. Grand Marnier (I used 4 tablespoons Saco Dutch Cocoa plus 1 tsp Vanilla)
DIRECTIONS:
To Make cake layers: Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease four 9-inch circular cake pans and line bottoms of circles with a piece of parchment paper.
Melt chocolate, water, and cocoa in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Cool to lukewarm.
In your stand mixer, beat yolks, 2/3 cup sugar, and salt until thick and pale for about 5 minutes. Stir in melted chocolate until combined. In a separate HUGE bowl, beat 12 egg whites until they begin to thicken and slightly hold peaks . Add remaining sugar and beat until whites just hold stiff peaks. Fold one third of whites into melted-chocolate mixture, then fold in remaining whites carefully. Spread batter evenly over four baking pans. Bake until the cake has puffed and the top is dry to the touch, maybe 16 minutes. I rotated my cake pans once to ensure they cooked evenly. Once the cake is done, cool the cake pans on cooling racks for about 10 minutes.If you wish, sift cocoa powder over top of cake layers. Then place a piece of waxed paper over the top of the cake pans. Place a cookie sheet over paper and invert cake onto it, gently peeling off wax paper lining. For best results, place all of the layers in the freezer for at least 1 hours or until they are firm enough to be carefully lifted without breaking.To make the filling: In a clean large bowl, beat cream with powdered sugar, cocoa powder, and vanilla until it just holds stiff peaks.
To assemble the cake:
Bring first cake layer out of the freezer (leave the others in the freezer until you are ready for them) and arrange on your cake plate, cocoa side down. Spread 1/4 of filling evenly over the cake layer. Bring the next cake layer out of the freezer, placing it gently over the filling, again cocoa side down. Repeat until the cake is assembled!
Keep cake in the refrigerator until serving time.
Dark chocolate grated into curls with a vegetable peeler makes for an excellent garnish or sprinkle with chocolate chips.
