Monday, January 24, 2011

Spiced Chocolate Torte Part 3…Finally

We have finally arrived at act 3, the chocolate ribbons.
Chocolate Ribbons
7 ounces white chocolate
7 ounces of bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
1/2 cup of light corn syrup, divided IMG_1544I set up two double boilers. Melt the chocolate until smooth, then stir in 1/4 cup of corn syrup into each bowl of chocolate.IMG_1545Pour the chocolates onto a parchment lined baking sheet and chill in the refrigerator for 30-40 minutes, until firm.IMG_1547Next , knead the white chocolate several times on a clean work surface. Shape the chocolate into a ball, wrap in plastic, and let stand at room temperature for 1 hour. Repeat with the semisweet chocolate.IMG_1552Cut the ball of chocolate into 4 pieces. Flatten each piece until you are able to run it through a pasta roller set to the widest opening. Run the chocolate through the pasta roller 3 times at the widest setting, folding the chocolate in thirds before each pass. Turn the roller to the next narrower setting and run chocolate through once. If you don’t have a pasta roller, you’ll have to roll it by hand. You want the chocolate to be about 1/16th of an inch thick.IMG_1549Next, you’ll need to cut out four 8x1 inch strips of white chocolate and four 8x1/2 inch strips of semisweet. I cut out one 8x1 inch strip of parchment paper and one 8x1/2 strip of paper to use as templates. I put the chocolate on the cutting board and used my paper templates to help me cut uniform strips. Also, I found that a pizza cutter worked great for cutting the chocolate into strips.IMG_1550Now, just lay the semisweet strips on top of the white ones. Run the 4 strips from the base of the cake to the center as pictured above.IMG_1562We’re almost there. Using the same method from above, cut thirteen 6-1/2x1 inch strips of white chocolate and thirteen 6-1/2x1/2 inch strips of semisweet. Run four strips of ribbon from the top center of the cake over the sides about half way down. Cut the bottom of the strips at a 45 degree angle to look more like ribbons. These strips should run between the strips that run from the center to the base. The two of the shorter strips are pictured above to the left and right of the full length strip. The next 9 strips of chocolate will be used to make the bow on top. Fold 8 of the chocolate ribbon over into a bow piece. Use a knife to cut the ends of the bow into a “V” shape (as seen on the piece of cake pictured below. Arrange the eight bow pieces on top of the cake. Take the final ribbon and roll it in a loop to place in the center of the bow.IMG_1586Whew!!!! All that is left to do is impress your friends and family. Enjoy!!!

7 comments:

  1. A pasta roller was the key! I've been so curious. Oh, the patience you must have...

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  2. You are my hero! Those ribbons are hardcore! Congratulations on a beautiful cake! At least now you know how to do it so you can make a really yummy cake next time and jazz it up with your amazing decorative skills!

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  3. Wow this cake looks amazing! Love the ribbons!! Job well done!

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  4. I promise you one thing...if I EVER made a cake that took this much work, it better be for a food contest that would win me a million dollars! I salute you for such a beautiful cake! Kay Guest

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  5. Wow. thank you for such a great tutorial on this cake! I really am excited to try it. I owe the boyfriend a birthday cake, I think I'll make this on my day off and surprise him.

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  6. The cake sounds delicious to me, and really LOOKS amazing! That's what I call a showstopper cake! Nicely done.

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  7. I've made the non gluten free version a few times. Still my favorite fancy, special cake. I've never made the gluten free version, but I am going to and will report back. The best advice here is START A DAY AHEAD AT LEAST. It is very time consuming, but worth every minute. I have to admit, I slacked on the ribbons; I'd probably have to start 2 days ahead for that. Can't wait to try this GF version. I love baking and I hate that I often can't eat what I bake :(

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