Decadent Devil's Food Cake, Amaretto Buttercream

Introduction

I’m crazy about chocolate, so this book needed a serious chocolate cake. This isn’t just any chocolate cake—it’s the essential one: straightforward, with a gourmet edge from Amaretto in the batter and the filling. A honey ganache glaze makes it the devil’s favourite—and any mortal’s too.

Instructions

For the cake:

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Butter two 22cm round tins.

2. Melt the chocolates and butter in a bain-marie until silky. Cool slightly.

3. Sift flour, baking powder and bicarbonate into a bowl.

4. Whisk sugar, eggs and vanilla until doubled in volume. Beat in yogurt.

5. Fold in melted chocolate, then the dry ingredients to a creamy batter.

6. Mix hot water, espresso and Amaretto.

7. Beat the liquid into the batter in stages until smooth.

8. Divide between tins (or bake in two batches if you only have one tin).

9. Bake about 30–35 minutes.

10. Cool in tins briefly, then unmould onto a rack to cool completely.

For the Amaretto and orange buttercream:

1. Beat the butter until creamy.

2. Gradually beat in icing sugar, Amaretto, orange juice and zest.

For the chocolate and honey ganache:

1. Heat the cream until almost boiling.

2. Pour over chopped chocolate; stand 1 minute.

3. Stir until smooth and glossy.

4. Stir in honey.

For the white chocolate spiderweb:

1. Melt white chocolate in a bain-marie, stirring.

2. When liquid, remove from heat.

3. With a food thermometer, stir constantly, adding a small piece of chocolate at a time until you hit exactly 27°C. If it melts too soon, add another piece. At temperature, remove any unmelted pieces.

4. Return briefly to the bain-marie until exactly 28°C, then remove.

5. Pipe through a small hole cut in a parchment cone. Place a spiderweb drawing under parchment and trace the web.

6. Set a few minutes at room temperature.

7. Peel the web carefully from the paper.

To serve:

1. With cakes completely cool, spread a layer of buttercream on one layer (keep it thin if you don’t want it to overpower the chocolate).

2. Top with the second layer.

3. Cover the whole cake with ganache, smoothing with a palette knife.

4. Sprinkle fleur de sel on top and dust with gold.

5. Arrange overlapping rosemary sprigs along one arc of the top edge.

6. Add more rosemary around the sides.

7. Gently press the chocolate webs onto the cake.

8. It’s even better the next day.