Flourless chocolate cassis cake w/ creme anglaise - bon a

Yield: 12 servings

Measure Ingredient
2 cups Half and half
1 \N Vanilla bean, split lengthwise
½ cup Sugar
4 larges Egg yolks
10 ounces Bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
¾ cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
½ cup Unsweetened cocoa powder
½ cup Creme de cassis liqueur
5 larges Eggs
1 cup Sugar
¼ cup Whipping cream
8 ounces Bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
6 tablespoons Plus 3/4 C creme de cassis liqueur
\N \N Fresh mint sprigs

CREME ANGLAISE

CAKE

ICING

FOR CREME ANGLAISE: 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 mixture 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.

FOR CAKE: Preheat oven to 350'F. Butter 9-inch diaeter springform cake pan with 2¾-inch-high sides. Line bottom with parchment; butter 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 whitens 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 inserrted into center comes out with very moist crumbs attached, about 40 minutes. Cool cake in pan on rack 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.

FOR ICING: Bring cream to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Add choco- late and 6 T cassis; whisk until smooth. Let icing stand until cool but still spreadable, about 15 minutes.

Place cake on plate, Spread icing over top and sides. Chill 1 hour.

(Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover, chill. Let stand 2 hours at room temperature before serving.)

Simmer ¾ C cassis in heavy small saucepan until reduced to generous ½ C, about 5 minutes. Cool.

Spoon creme anglaise onto plates, forming pool. Spoon reduced cassis dec- oratively atop sauce and swirl with knife. Slice cake. Place 1 slice in center of each plate. Garnish with mint.

Bon Appetit/January/1994 Scanned & edited by Di Pahl & <gg>

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