Discovering traits /-/ Glazed Chocolate Blueberry cake with Cookie crumb crust

This time I have no story to tell. Instead I am going to tell you why how process of eating and making  chocolate cake can tell you a lot about your personality . I have only realised this once I made this easy as butter milk chocolate cake with blueberry grape syrup and coconut whip cream. This was for my little niece as she had just turned 6 months a month back; you know it is always nice to blame someone else for  baking.  Let see if you can guess what kind of person I am.
 
 

We all have good intentions when making chocolate cake; we plan ahead and careful search for that recipe that makes the best one. Deciding what recipe to use for chocolate cake is up there with all major choices in life. Well, that and if you are going to order a main or entrée depending on the dessert menu. I do not know about you I focus more on find a recipe for cake than actually making the recipe for cake. Thinking that I can prevent a baking fail of I search hard enough for a recipe, it rarely works but hey I am set in my ways. Also the pretty, pretty pictures of chocolate cake are addictive to look at. Personality trait: Over cautious
 




Making chocolate cake; careful measuring and the stirring in of ingredients is mesmerising. The glossy hue of light brown with the disappearing specks of matte dark velvet is my favourite part of baking chocolate cake; nothing is more satisfying than to see the batter being made. O.k. may not the most satisfying, licking the spoon is better.  Anyway, the shifting of flours, melting of chocolate and stirring of the batter are repetitive motions that I would gladly do all day. Personality trait: Pedantic
 
 

Now baking…. The worst part of chocolate cake. The baking and waiting for it to rise with that smell waffling out of the oven? Torture!!  Anyone else think watching cake bake is like magic?
But never fear hurrah! It is done! Waiting for it cool. Really another setback? Prrfff…. Personality Trait: Impatient and fussy


 
Frosting it is honestly my favourite part. The swirling of the icing on the cake is like art and of course I do sometimes take too long when icing the cake before any gets to eat it. However the aesthetics are well worth the effort. Personality trait?  Visual Perfectionist
 
Eating cake? Well that is all about judging whether or not your effort have paid off. I might judge myself too harshly sometimes but I guess we are all are own worst critic. Personality trait? I have no idea…
 


Next time you bake a cake maybe you can track your personality too. It is really very interesting.
This cake is perfectly fine as a round cake but for my little niece she deserves my take on a shaped cake.  Donna Hay’s Chocolate cake is made from buttermilk which gives it texture like red velvet but it is so easy to remember the measurements for it. I love ratio cooking!  It is dense in flavour like brownie but light enough to be called cake. The fine, tender crumb soaks up the syrup well which makes it even more moreish. 


 
It is so easy to cut the shape out it! Simply make a template you wish and cut it out like a cookie shape. I used a 23cm round cake tin and cut out two shapes from one layer; this means 4 layers from two cake layers. Make sure you drench the cake in blueberry syrup well because it really does add to the flavour of the cake which is complimented by the light as air coconut cream. I know everyone seems to be doing this but the coconut cream is my newest obsession.
 A light chocolate cookie crumb coats the lightly whipped dark ganache frosting which holds these luscious layers and macerated berries in place. Yes the blueberries are not traditional for dark chocolate but the Lindt blueberry dark chocolate with almonds is my newest fave night time chocolate meal.

 

Glazed Chocolate Blueberry cake with Cookie crumb crust.
 
Chocolate cake
Taken directly from Donna Hay

•      250g butter
•    1⅓ cups (235g) brown sugar
•    3 eggs
•    2 cups (300g) plain (all-purpose) flour
•    1½ teaspoons baking powder
•    ⅓ cup (35g) cocoa powder
•    1 cup (250ml) full fat sour cream
•    250g dark chocolate, melted
 
Coconut whip cream
•    One can coconut milk, refrigerated for 24 hours
•    50g pure icing sugar, shifted
 
Blueberry syrup
•    200g blueberries, fresh or frozen
•    200g water
•    100g sugar
 
Blueberries- macerated
•    250g Fresh blueberries
•    1 lemon worth of zest
•    60ml crème de cassis
•    10g caster sugar
 
Chocolate glaze/ ganache ( you will need to divide this in two bowls)
•    450g dark chocolate, chopped
•    ⅓ cup (200ml) pouring (single) cream
•    20g butter, softened
 
CHOCOLATE CAKE
Preheat oven to 160°C (325°F). Grease a 22cm cake tin.  Cream butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer for 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time and beat well. Sift the flour, baking powder and cocoa over the butter mixture, add the sour cream and chocolate, and mix until just combined.
Pour into 2 lined and greased 23 cm layer cake pan, making sure they are as even as possible. Bake for 25-35 minutes or until a wooden skewer cake tester comes clean. Cool in tin for ten mintues before turning out on to a cooling rack. Place in fridge to chill.
 
GANACHE/ GLAZE
To make the chocolate glaze, combine the chocolate and cream in a saucepan over low heat and stir until smooth. Divide mix into two bowls, one third of the mixture in one and two third of the mixture in another. The larger mix will be for the frosting and smaller bowl for the glaze. Set the small bowl aside to cool to room temp.
With the larger bowl place in the fridge for 30 minutes, stir it and return to the fridge again for 30 minutes. Continue to do this until you slowly get a thickmixture.
 
BLUEBERRIES (macerated)
In a large bowl place fresh blueberries, lemon juice, cassis and sugar. Gently mix and allow to stand in the fridge covered until needed.
 
BLUEBERRY SYRUP
In a medium pot, combined the syrup ingredients and bring it to the boil. Reduce it down to a simmer and allow it to bubble for 5-10 minutes. Once mix has slightly thicken, remove it from the heat and strain the mix into another bowl. You may keep blueberries for a topping on waffles or toast.
 
COCONUT WHIP
Use this recipe from How sweet it is. I made no changes to it.
 
ASSEMBLY
Cut out template
One recipe of the chocolate cake, one recipe of glaze/ganache divided
One recipe of syrup
One recipe of blueberries ( macerated)
One recipe of coconut whip
Decoration
Cookie crumb, Caramelized white chocolate dust

Using a paper template, cut around the shape with sharp knife. Depending on your shape you may only get one shape or two.
 Place on layer on a piece of baking paper. Using a pastry brush , spread on the syrup.  After Spread a generous coat of coconut whip. Spread a few blueberries on top of this whip. Place another cake layer on top. Repeat until all layers are used.
Crumb frost the cake with a small amount of ganache. Allow to set in the fridge for 30 minutes. Prepare a shallow cookie tray filled with cookie crumbs.
Spread another layer of ganache on to the cake. Before it is set cover the cake in the cookie crumbs by rolling the sides fist in the crumb than the top.
 Re warm the glaze in a Bain Marie. Allow the glaze to stand for 5 minutes before spreading over the top of the cake. Sprinkle with caramelised white chocolate. Fridge for 1 hour before serving.