Layered Chocolate Mousse Birthday Cake!

Birthday's are "just another day" for Vineet. One day you are 'young and dynamic' and the next you're 'older and wiser'.I'm on the other hand, the kind of person who is willing to celebrate pretty much anything, so my dear husbands 30th was'nt exactly something that I was going let slip by without as much as a cake! So this one is dedicated to Vineet and all of our friends, who have turned or are soon turning 'older and (hopefully) wiser' this year! :D Happy birthday!

 So, since the mousse needs a little time to cool down and set before it can be assembled onto the cake, I recommend you begin with that. I started with the cake and ended up wasting a lot of time waiting for the moussed to cool!

PART 01/03 - THE MOUSSE !

Ingredients for the Chocolate Mousse:

1 cup Heavy Cream 

175 g Bittersweet chocolate (chopped - I used bittersweet chocolate chips)

1/4 cup Sugar

3 tbsp Unsweetened Cocoa powder (sifted)

4 tbsp Unsalted butter (at room temperature)

4 large Egg whites

1 tsp Vanilla extract

1/4 tsp Salt

Method:

1.  Pour cream into a large saucepan and set over a medium flame. Add the Cocoa powder and stir, and bring the cream to a full boil. 

2. Remove the pan from heat and immediately add the chocolate chips and butter. Whisk with a fork until melted and smooth. Add the Vanilla extract and salt. 

3. One by one separate the egg whites into a clean and dry (preferably glass) bowl. Whip the egg separated egg whites using a hand held electric beater till they're fluffy yet stiff. Once the egg whites are stiff and form soft peaks, scoop them into the cooling chocolate mixture, little by little and gently fold in using a rubber spatula or a wooden spoon. 

*Avoid over mixing as this will 'deflate' the egg whites, and can mess up the texture and lightness of the mousse.*
If you've never beaten egg whites before, please see: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVcNDhwwFB8

 

4. Set the pan over a bowl of iced water. Alternatively, allow it to cool to room temperature naturally. Pour into a glass/Steel bowl and chill in the refrigerator till it sets.

While the mousse cools, get on with the cake!

PART 02/03 - THE CAKE!

DRY Ingredients for Cake:  

1-1/2 cups Cake flour (maida)

1/3 cup Unsweetened Cocoa powder 

1 cup Sugar

2 tsp Baking powder 

1/4 tsp Baking Soda

1/4 tsp Salt

WET Ingredients for Cake:

1 cup Water 

1/4 cup Vegetable oil 

1 large egg 

2 tsp Vanilla extract

Method:

1a.  Preheat the oven to 180 deg C.

1b.  Lightly grease a 9" x 2" cake tin with a little butter/ oil and dust it with a little maida. Set aside without touching the dusted surface.

2.  Sift together all the dry ingredients (except sugar) in a large mixing bowl. Then add the sugar and whisk until blended.

3. In a glass bowl mix together the Wet ingredients using a fork.

4.  Pour the wet mixture into the dry mixture and gently beat until the dry mix is moistened. Do not overbeat - or the cake will bulge in centre like a 'dome'.

5.  Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin and bake in the preheated oven for about 30-35 mins or till a knife comes out clean. (My oven took about 42 mins).

6. Once done baking, allow the cake to cool slightly (about 20-25 mins). Loosen the sides with a knife and turn it out onto a cooling rack. Allow it to cool completely.

PART 03/03 - ASSEMBLING THE CAKE !

 1.  Once the cake has completely cooled, slice the cake in half horizontally. To ensure that you cut across in neatly and not unevenly, line the edge of the cake with toothpicks, or mark 'dots' using a fork for a line of reference. 

2. Once you have the cake in 2 flat-ish halves, Line your serving plate on the edges with some paper napkins and lay the 1 half of the cake on top.

3.  Bring out the chilled mousse and slather it onto one half. Place the 2nd half on top and apply a very slight pressure with your fingers. The mousse will squish out from the middle. (If you're a pig like me, you will scoop it up with one finger and lick it up.... Don't worry, no one will judge you for being greedy :D)

3.  Use a rubber spatula or a flattish wooden spoon and smear the rest of the mousse over the assembled cake. Allow it to set and chill in the fridge till its time to dig in!

Decorating the cake:

Yes, I love my husband, and would go to the end of the world for him, but at 4 pm on a Saturday afternoon, I just got uncharacteristically lethargic... So I took the easy way out and topped the cake with some fresh berries and really, it dint need anything else!

Since this cake is really moist and soft, it might not be a good idea to stick birthday candles into it , since the mousse will begin to melt with the heat... And anyway, as we get older, there end up being more candles than cake... now WHO needs THAT! :)