Chocolate Cake with Caramel

Ingredients

• 120 g dark chocolate couverture
• 150 g butter
• 100 g sugar
• 4 eggs
• 60 ml milk
• 200 g Flour
• 2 tbsp cocoa powder
• 100 g Ground Almonds
• 1 tsp Baking powder
• 250 g soft caramel candies
• 400 ml whipping cream
• 200 g mascarpone
• 1 packet gelatin

Instructions

1. 1.

   Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) with both top and bottom heat.

2. 2.

   For the batter, roughly chop the chocolate and melt it over a double boiler. Let it cool slightly. Beat the butter with the sugar until fluffy. Gradually fold in the eggs and melted chocolate. Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, and almonds; add to the butter mixture and stir in the milk. Pour the batter into a springform pan lined with parchment paper, smooth the top, and bake for about 35 minutes (test with a toothpick). Let it cool slightly before removing from the pan and placing on a cooling rack. Once cooled, transfer to a cake ring.

3. 3.

   Cut 4–5 caramel candies into small pieces for garnish and set aside. In a small saucepan, heat the remaining candies with 200 ml cream over low heat while stirring until melted. Allow to cool completely, then fold into the mascarpone. Whip the remaining cream stiffly; pipe 4–5 tablespoons of it into a piping bag fitted with a star tip. Fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone mixture and spread evenly over the cake base. Decorate with a decorative knife and chill for about an hour.

4. 4.

   Garnish with caramel pieces and cream swirls, remove the cake ring, slice, and serve.