Chocolate Cherry Torte

Yield: 1 9†cake

of Servings: 12 to 14

Method: Creaming

Ingredients

Cake

6 oz (170 g) chocolate, 55% to 64%, wafers or broken up 

â…” cup (3 oz / 85 g) all-purpose flour

½ cup (1.55 oz / 44 g) almond flour, lightly toasted

12 tbl (6 oz / 170 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
â…” cup (4.7 oz / 133 g) sugar

2 eggs, large or extra large

1 tsp vanilla extract

½ tsp almond extract 

1 egg, large or extra large

1 24 oz jar Morello cherries, drained and patted dry (see below for sources)

Almond paste topping:

8 oz (227 g) almond paste
Confectioners’ sugar, as needed

Ganache:

½ cup (4 fl oz) heavy cream
4 oz (113 g) chocolate, 64% to 70%, wafers or chopped

Chocolate Glaze:

4.5 oz chocolate, 61% to 64%, wafers or broken up, melted
3 oz unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tbl light corn syrup

Decoration (optional):

2 oz (57 g) milk chocolate, wafers or broken up

Special tools and equipment needed:

• One 9†by 2†cake pan
• 9†parchment circle
• 8†or 9†cardboard cake 
• Counter top mixer with paddle attachment or hand-held mixer.

Pre-recipe preparations:

• Butter the cake pan and line with parchment circle, butter the parchment.
• Lightly toast the almond flour in a 325 °F oven just until a light golden brown. Let cool.
• Drain and pat dry cherries
• Bring butter to room temperature
• Preheat oven to 350 °F

Directions:

Cake:

1. Melt chocolate. Set aside in warm place.
2. Whisk together flour and almond flour in small bowl. Set aside.
3. In machine bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
4. Beat eggs and extracts together in small bowl or 1-cup measuring cup. Add slowly to the butter and sugar mixture, in two stages, until thoroughly combined.
5. Add chocolate and beat. Scrape bottom and sides of the bowl, and mix until a homogenous mixture.
6. Add dry ingredients and mix very briefly, until mostly combined.
7. Add final eggs and beat until well blended.
8. Scrape the batter into the cake pan and level with spatula.
9. Starting on the outer edge of the cake batter, press the cherries into the batter. Continue with a tight circle of cherries (see picture below) and continue with another ring of cherries until you reach the center. The cherries should be tight against each other. When finished the entire top should be covered in cherries, with only a few possibly remaining.
10. Place in the middle of the oven and bake until the center just feels firm, and a test of the center reveals wet crumbs, about 35 to 40 minutes.
11. Remove from the oven and let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Turn over onto a cardboard circle or flat cake plate and then flip back onto a cake cooling rack. Let cool

Covering cake – pre glaze:

1. Slide cardboard circle under the cake.
2. Using confectioners’ sugar as you would flour for pie dough, roll out the almond paste to a 9†circle.
3. Place on top of cake, and trim if it extends past the edge.
4. Crumb coat the cake by spreading a thin layer of ganache over the entire cake. It doesn’t have to look pretty at this point, you are just sealing the cake to make a smooth surface for the chocolate glaze.
5. Let sit and allow the ganache to set and dry, about 45 minutes.

Making the glaze:

1. Place the chocolate, butter, and corn syrup in a small heavy bottomed saucepan.
2. Over very low heat, warm the mixture enough so the chocolate is mostly melted. Do not overheat.
3. Remove from the heat and stir with heat-proof spatula or spoon until all the chocolate is melted. Stir with a whisk once or twice just until smooth. Do not whip air into the glaze.
4. Let sit, gently stirring occasionally until 90 °F to 92 °F.

Finishing the cake:

1. If decorating with spider-web design, melt milk chocolate and place in a small parchment decorating cone.
2. Place the cake on either a cooling rack over a clean work surface or a decorating turntable.
3. Pour all the glaze over the top of the cake and with long metal spatula quickly spread the glaze over the entire cake, letting it fall over the sides. The less you work the glaze the shinier it will be.
4. Use the glaze that has dripped off the cake to cover any bare spots.
5. Lift the rack a half-inch off the surface and drop to help the glaze drip down the sides.
6. If decorating with spider-web design, pipe a spiral of milk chocolate starting from the center. Using the tip of a paring knife or wooden skewer, immediately pull an alternating set of lines toward the center and toward the edge.
7. Slide a long offset spatula under the cake and move to serving plate.
8. Let glaze totally set before slicing, about 1 ½ hours.
9. Serve cake at room temperature.