FLOWER POT KITCHEN: DECADANT CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE TORTE CAKE

11 Sept 2012

DECADANT CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE TORTE CAKE

DEEP RICH VELVETY DECADENT SUMPTUOUS DARK CHOCOLATE TORTE TOPPED WITH AMARETTO WHITE CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES AND COINTREAU DARK CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES AND 100% DARK CHOCOLATE LATTICE DECORATION

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE SHORTBREAD BASE

170g plain flour

115g butter chopped

60g caster sugar

By hand is the key here, place the flour in a large bowl and add the butter and rub the butter and flour together gently with your finger tips until you have a fine breadcrumb consistency. Take your cake tin and grease, tip in the shortbread crumbs and then push down firmly to create the base. Cook at 180 degrees for approx 20 minutes, you want to keep the shortbread rather pale and the edges will catch just ever so. Leave to cool on a cake rack, once cooled place on parchment paper and place the tin back over the shortbread, line the sides only with cling film ready to fill with the chocolate torte.

THE CHOCOLATE TRUFFLE TORTE

600ml double cream

425g plain 70%+ chocolate

So simple yet so divine, in a bain marie melt the chocolate slowly, take off the heat as soon as 90% melted and leave to cool for 10 minutes. Once cooled pour the cream in to a large bowl ready to whisk, whisk until medium soft peeks form, slowly pour in the chocolate and fold in until all the mixture is the same colour. Place on top of the shortbread base, pushing down to remove any air bubbles and smooth, place in the fridge to set.

TO MAKE THE TRUFFLES

WHITE CHOCOLATE

200g white chocolate

1 tbsp amaretto

100ml double cream

1 tbsp butter

PLAIN CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES

200g dark chocolate 70%+

100ml double cream

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp cointreau

Melt the butter and cream in a bain marie gently, once almost simmering add the chocolate and melt, when melted add the amaretto and stir in well, pour into a lined small tin and place int the fridge to set for a couple of hours. After set using teaspoons form into balls best you can and place on a plate lined with baking paper, place back into the fridge to set for another 30minutes, then roll into balls and place back into the fridge, meanwhile melt some white chocolate in the bain marie and roll the balls in the chocolate and place back on the parchment paper, drizzle over any left over chocolate to make random patterns on the truffles, set in the fridge. These will keep a soft centre. Place on top of the truffle torte as decoration or serve on their own. To make some chocolate lattice to decorate the cake all I did was melt some dark chocolate in a bain marie and then drizzle lattice knots on to the baking paper and place in the fridge to set, to remove use a baking spatula and lift off.

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LIFE MY PASSION

Welcome to my daily life of cooking, one winters day many years ago my family and I were all inspired by a back to back rainy day of River Cottage this got us to stop talking about and start actually doing, suddenly three weeks later eight vegetable beds were dug, greenhouse erected and our first vegetables were propagating, this was the start to raising and growing our own food, our fabulous son Oscar changed our path in life which lead us to sell our small thriving restaurant of 10 yrs and to start our new life (Terrifying!) a life of the self sufficient in touch with nature and seasons, taking a step back and looking forward to a slower change of pace and making the most of every moment.

My passion for cooking was stronger than ever and having time at home with Oscar I found I had a new direction and I was no longer striving for perfection, I was suddenly very passionate for the enjoyment of the other side of food, something I had not realised, being the Chef/Cook and every other duty of your own small restaurant made me see that I never actually took time to cook what I wanted!

So there I was muddy boots and hands digging deep in more than one sense and I found myself transported back in time to where everyone grew some of their own food, it is a wonderful world with a real sense of achievement and loss, Slugs Snails and Caterpillars! But thats another story! Childhood memories of summers when I lived with my grand parents reminded me of so much that I had learnt about the make do and mend generation that I had forgotten.

Now as a family we love our free wild food days where we gather what nature has provided, have gone from being mini mini garden urban small holders, who did raised pigs at home because we could not wait to find land and supporting ourselves from our garden to now owning a very small farm that allows us to grow more vegetables for the whole of our family and neighbours, raise our own gorgeous Gloucestershire Old Spot pigs, (Sausages!) and pets! Dorset Down sheep, chickens for eggs and pet goats! Suddenly having large quantities of produce started to wake up the Cook in me!

The Cook was awake that part of me that wants to cook for the masses and I found myself setting up Flowerpot Kitchen, a Farmers Market Stall, I wanted to use our honest raised meats and make old fashioned pork pies, rabbit pies and game pies from the local game keeper along with old fashioned techniques and the best hot water crust pastry. This in turn grew to a small cottage industry from home weekly supplying three farm shops and a deli along with also attending three farmers markets A few years later there came a time when my son Oscar's health changed and it was an easy decision to stop.

I still hold the occasional pop up 40 seater restaurant or gourmet lunch which we do for local charities for the love of sharing food and to remind that Cook in me why I love our go slower self sufficient life!

So here I am sitting amoung the vegetables watching the chickens loving that every season nature teaches me something new and that nature is in charge! She has taught me to just go with it and grow. Give it a try from a tray of salad on your windowsill to a few tomato plants it all counts.