Triple chocolate cake

This is another cake I baked, inspired by the HM Conscious Exclusive collection. The dress was black, as black as can be, and the first thing that popped into my mid was - chocolate. I thought I would make just one chocolate cake, but when I discovered that this dress is made from fishing nets and other rubbish (sounds crazy, but that is actually so, so fantastic), I wanted the cake to be a surprise too. So I made a triple chocolate cake, which you can only see when you cut into it. It is the same as with the dress – you think it is just a beautiful dress, but there is so much more to it.

Ingredients

cake layers:
200 g flour
50 g cacao powder
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp soda
pinch of sea salt
1/3 tsp vanilla powder
3 eggs, room temperature
140 g demerara sugar
40 light muscavado sugar
120 g melted butter, chilled a bit
220 g buttermilk
50 ml espresso

raspberry jam:
330 g thawed raspberries
50 g golden caster sugar
pinch of sea salt
1/2 zest of an organic orange, finely grated

creams:
75 g white chocolate (chopped) + 60 ml whipping cream
100 g milk chocolate (chopped) + 50 ml whipping cream
140 g 70% chocolate (chopped) + 180 ml whipping cream
100 g mascarpone cream
pinch of sea salt

For the outer layer:
50 g 70% chocolate (chopped)
60 ml whipping cream

Prepare

Preheat the oven to 180°. Butter three 9-inch cake rounds. Dust with flour and tap out the excess or line with baking paper (bottom and sides).

Make the sponge. Mix together flour, cocoa, soda, baking powder, vanilla and salt in a stand mixer using a low speed until combined.

In another bowl, mix eggs, sugars, buttermilk, butter, and espresso. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and beat until just combined and the batter is smooth – do not overmix. Divide the batter equally among the prepared pans. Bake in the center of the oven for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with few moist crumbs.

Cool in the pans on wire racks for 15 minutes and then turn out the cakes onto the racks and allow to cool completely.

Make the raspberry jam while the cake is baking. Put all the ingredients into a pan and boil for 15 minutes on medium high heat until it starts to thicken. Take off the heat and cool completely. This can be made 3-4 days ahead (cool and keep in the fridge).

Make the cream while the cakes are cooling. Put each type of chocolate into a separate bowl. Heat the cream until boiling. Pour the amount noted onto each. Wait for 1 minute and stir until each mixture is smooth. Cool the creams until they are easy to spread.

Before making the cake, put the mascarpone and sea salt into a bowl and mix with a mixer until creamy. With the mixer still running, slowly add the white chocolate mixture. Mix until the cream holds its shape.

Layer the cake. Slice one sponge in half horizontally. Cut off the top layer of each sponge (the one that looks like a hill). You have to make the cake even.

Place the first whole sponge onto a plate. Pipe some dark chocolate cream around the edges (1 cm thick to prevent leaking). Divide raspberry jam into three parts and spread one part on this layer. Put the cream on top. Place the second sponge (the one you cut in half) and repeat using the milk chocolate cream. Then place the other half of the cut sponge and repeat with the white chocolate cream. Put in the fridge while you make the outer layer.

For the outer layer. Put chocolate into a bowl. Heat the cream until boiling. Pour onto chocolate, wait for 1 minute, and stir until mixture is smooth and shiny. Cool until it is easy to spread. Take a bit and spread around the cake (just a bit, so that you can cover the cake, like making a naked cake). When the cake is covered, the cream has “glued” all of the crumbs, and now you can spread the rest of the cream. Cover and put in the fridge for 12 hours. Take out 1-2 h before serving (I do it when the party starts and I know there is plenty of time). Decorate and serve.

Pictures of me: Natalija Berezina ( @natalieberezina )
Rest of the pictures, style and text: Signe Meirane
In collaboration with HM Home Conscious Exclusive
Place: White Studio
Plates and table decorations: HM Home
Make up: Julija Balinska ( @juliabalinska )