Chocolate Ecstacy Cake

Chocolate Cake: 4 large eggs

2 cups sugar

2/3 cup sifted cake flour

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 cup dark cocoa

Chocolate Butter Cream: 1 1/3 cups sugar

6 ounces egg whites (about 3/4 cup)

3/4 pound butter, softened (3 cubes)

1 teaspoon vanilla

7 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted

Whipped Cream Frosting: 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

Chocolate Cake: Beat eggs with sugar at high speed 5 minutes. Sift together cake flour, all purpose flour, baking powder and cocoa; fold into egg batter. Pour batter into a greased and floured 10 inch pan. Bake at 350 degrees about 1 hour or until cake begins to separate from sides of pan. Remove cake from the pan while still warm. Wrap in plastic wrapping and place in the freezer.

Chocolate Butter Cream: Place sugar and egg whites in the top of a double boiler and heat until sugar dissolves. Beat at high speed until meringue forms peaks. Gradually add softened butter and continue whipping. Then add vanilla and melted chocolate until well blended.

Whipped Cream Frosting: Combine cream, sugar, and vanilla; whip at high speed until stiff peaks form.

To assemble cake: Slice frozen cake horizontally into thirds. Spread one third of the butter cream on the top of the first layer. Place the second layer above that and spread one third of the butter cream on top, reserving the remaining one third butter cream for decoration. Place the third layer of the cake in place. Cover entire cake, including sides, with the whipped cream frosting. Decorate top center of cake with shaved bits of semisweet chocolate. Using a pastry bag with a medium star tip, make rosettes around the circumference of the cake using the remainder of the butter cream. Finally, place chocolate square around the side of the cake. To make chocolate squares, spread a thin layer of melted semisweet chocolate onto waxed paper then place in refrigerator to harden. Cut chocolate into 1 1/2 inch square.

Rich and chocolately you can prepare this cake in a conventional round shaped pan or a pretty heart shaped one for Valentine`s Day! If you have don`t have a heart shaped pan handy, don`t fret. Simply substitute one square and one round pan and prepare two cakes. Slice the round layer in half and arrange the halves as shown in the picture. Voila! A heart shaped cake.

Recipe source: Chocolate Sunday