Chocolate Dream

Ingredients :

Cake:
All-purpose flour - 1 1/2Cups
Superfine sugar - 1 cup
Baking powder - 1 teaspoon
Baking soda - 1/2 teaspoon
Best-quality cocoa powder - 1/3 cup
Soft unsalted butter - 1 1/2 sticks
Large eggs - 2
Vanilla extract - 2 teaspoons
Sour cream - 2/3 cup

Special equipment: 2 (each 8-inch diameter) layer round cake pan, buttered.
I have used a flower shaped cake mould.

Frosting:
Semisweet chocolate, broken into small pieces - 6 ounces
Unsalted butter - 3/4 stick
Confectioners' sugar (powder sugar) - 2 1/2 cups
Light corn syrup - 1 tablespoon
Sour cream - 1/2 cup
Vanilla extract - 1 teaspoon

Procedure :

1. Take everything out of the refrigerator so that all ingredients can come room temperature.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Sieve all the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, coco powder, salt. Keep in a separate bowl.

3. Cream the sugar and butter in a separate bowl. After the butter and sugar is mixed well, add eggs, vanilla extract, sour cream. (wet ingredients) Mix well.

4. Now add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until both are mixed together. Do not over mix after adding the dry ingredients.

5. Divide the batter in both of the buttered pans (I have used different shape moulds).



6. Now bake it for 25mins or until the cake tester comes out clean in 350 degree.

7. After it bakes, take the cake out the oven, let it cool and remove it from the cake pan or mold.

8. Don't worry about any cracks as they will easily be covered by the frosting later.

Frosting :

1. To make this icing, melt the chocolate and butter in a good-sized bowl either in the microwave or suspended over a pan of simmering water. Go slowly either way: you don't want any burning or seizing.

2. After the chocolate and butter is cooled a little, sieve the confectioners' sugar into it, add the corn syrup, sour cream and vanilla. Mix it well.

3. You may need to add a little boiling water, say a teaspoon or so, or indeed some more confectioners' sugar, depending on whether you need the frosting to be thinner or thicker. It should be liquid enough to coat easily, but thick enough not to drip off.

4. Place 1 of the cooled cake on a plate. (since I have used a mould I have slit open the cake in half horizontally, to fill the frosting).



5. Spoon 1/3 of the frosting on the middle of the cake....




6. Spoon another 1/3 of the frosting onto the top of the cake and spread it. Spread the sides of the cake with icing and leave a few minutes until set.

Handy Tips :

Oven temperature may vary according to the brands. So the baking timings may vary from 25 to 30 mins.

After the icing is done, we may decorate it with sugared flower candies or with colour sugar crystals.