Ingredients
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½ cup plus 3 tbsp/120 g Sugar
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4 Egg
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1 cup (120 g) all-purpose Flour
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¼ cup (20 g) Cocoa Powder
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¼ cup (50 g) Sugar
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3½ tbsp Water
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2 tbsp Rum
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7 oz (200 g) Dark Chocolate
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Pinch of Salt
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¾ cup plus 1 tbsp Heavy Cream
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2 tbsp (25 g) Butter
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Candied Orange
Directions
The black beret is the sartorial symbol of the Basque region; so much so that they even named a chocolate cake after it. A classic butterless genoise, doused in syrup and encased in a simple chocolate ganache, this is a serious chocolate bomb of a beret.
Steps
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1
Done
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Preheat the oven to 325°F. Butter the cake pan. In a glass or metal bowl, combine the sugar and eggs. Place the bowl over a pan of simmering water (making sure the bowl doesn’t touch the hot water). Whisk with an electric mixer until the mixture is very pale and almost tripled in size. This can take a while, so be patient. Remove from the heat. |
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2
Done
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Mix the flour and cocoa powder together. Sift a third of the cocoa-flour mixture into the egg mixture and fold in very gently. Repeat with half the remaining mixture, and repeat until it is all incorporated. Don’t overmix or the resulting cake will be rubbery. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 18 to 24 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Turn the cake out onto a wire rack and cool completely. |
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3
Done
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Meanwhile, place the sugar and water in a medium saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil. When the sugar has dissolved, remove from the heat and cool, then add the rum (if using). |
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4
Done
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Place the chopped chocolate and salt in a heatproof bowl. In a small pan over medium heat, warm the cream until bubbles form at the edges. Pour the cream over the chocolate and let rest for 2 minutes before stirring together with the butter until smooth (don’t overstir or the ganache will become stiff). |
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5
Done
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Use a sharp knife to trim the sides of the cake to form a dome, then cut it in half horizontally. Place the bottom layer on a serving plate. Brush the cake liberally with the sugar syrup. Using an offset spatula, spread the cake with half of the ganache. Top with the other half of the cake and brush well with more sugar syrup. Spread ganache all over the cake, smoothing it. Decorate with grated or shaved frozen chocolate and a piece of candied orange before serving. |
