Flourless Chocolate Cassis Cake with Creme Anglaise
Ingredients
- 2 c half and half
- 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
- 1/3 c sugar
- 4 large egg yolks
- 10 ounce bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
- 3/4 c unsalted butter
- 1/2 c creme de cassis
- 1/2 c cocoa powder
- 5 large eggs
- 1 c sugar
- 1/4 c whipping cream
- 6 tb plus 3/4 c creme de cassis liqueur
- 8 ounce bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
- Bring half and half to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Scrape in
- seeds from vanilla bean; add bean. Whisk sugar and yolks in bowl.
- Gradually whisk in half and half mixture. Return to saucepan; stir
- over medium low heat until custard thickens and leaves path on back
- of spoon when finger is drawn across, about 5 minutes. (Do not
- boil) Strain sauce. Cover, Chill until cold, at least 4 hours.
Instructions
Serves 12. Preheat oven to 350. Butter 9 inch springform pan with 2 3/4 inch high sides. Line bottom with parchment, Dust pan with flour, tap out excess. Melt chocolate and butter in heavy medium saucepan over low heat, stirring until smooth. Cool slightly, whisk in cocoa and cassis. Using electric mixer beat eggs and sugar in large bowl until mixture lightens and triples in volume, about 6 minutes. Add chocolate-butter mixture and fold together. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake until top forms crust and tester comes out with very moist crumbs attached, about 40 minutes. Cool cake in pan on rack for 5 minutes. Press down on crusty portion of cake to even. Release pan sides from cake. Turn out cake onto rack. Peel off parchment and cool completely. Icing Bring cream to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Add chocolate and 6 tb cassis; Whisk until smooth. Let icing stand until cool but still spreadable, about 15 minutes. Place cake on plate. Ice top and sides. Chill 1 hour. Simmer 3/4 c cassis in heavy small saucepan until reduced to generous 1/2 c, about 5 minutes. Cool. Spoon creme anglaise onto plates forming pool. Spoon reduced cassis decoratively atop sauce and swirl with knife. Place 1 slice in center of each plate.