Whilst browsing on Pinterest I found this gorgeous dessert, its rich, its indulgent, very grown up and gluten free. I love anything with salted caramel, so could not wait to have a reason to bake this dessert. I say dessert because even though it was referred to on Pinterest as a cake, I felt that it was better served as a pud, with a dollop of a good quality vanilla ice cream (yes I do mean Haagan Dazs), a rich dark espresso and a glass of Limoncello, you have the perfect end to a meal.
Its fairly simple, can be prepped in advance and next day is even better, as it seems more dense and rich, the salt seems to really come out in the caramel and I have just enjoyed a rather large slice for breakfast, I didn't get to bed until 3am, drank far to much, but had a very lovely evening with friends and Hubby, who I hope enjoyed this cake as much as I did.
Please don't be put off by the baking in the water bath, just make sure you only fill it half way up so the water doesn't get into your cake batter and remember not to use a loose bottom tin, because if any water does gets into it, it will ruin it.
I hope that all makes sense, I am sure at some point I will reread this, when less tired & less hungover and notice all the mistakes, but I just wanted to get this recipe on as soon as I could.
Buon appetito
14 ounces high-quality chocolate
1 stick plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter (approx 125 grams)
6 eggs
½ cup caster sugar
¼ cup dark brown sugar
¾ cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¼ cup light corn syrup
1 cup double cream
1 teaspoon salt
1 vanilla pod, split and beans scraped into a bowl
Preheat the oven to 180C, 350F, Gas Mark 4.
Grease a 9-inch round cake pan and line with parchment paper cut to fit the bottom of the pan. Set the prepared pan inside a 12-inch pan.
In a bain marie (heat proof bowl over a pan of simmering water), heat chocolate and 7 tablespoons (100 grams) of butter until fully melted. Stir until smooth. Let cool for about 5 minutes.
In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, the caster sugar, dark brown sugar, ¼ cup light brown sugar and the vanilla until fully incorporated. Add the cooled chocolate mixture to the egg mixture; whisk until smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared 9-inch pan. Carefully fill the larger pan with water until it reaches about halfway up the side of the smaller pan. Tightly cover with kitchen foil.
Bake until top of cake is no longer sticky to the touch, about 90 minutes (My oven cooked it quicker, so do keep an eye on it). Let cool for 10 minutes, then invert the cake onto a serving plate or cake stand to cool completely.
For the Sauce
In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, combine the remaining ½ cup light brown sugar, the remaining 2 tablespoons butter, the syrup, ½ cup cream and the salt and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Boil uncovered until the sauce is very thick and deep golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in the remaining ½ cup cream and return to a boil, stirring constantly until the mixture is perfectly smooth. Stir in the vanilla beans. Pour sauce into a heatproof glass jar; refrigerate until just cool (about 2 hours) and spread a thick layer over the cake. Refrigerate the cake until fully cool, about another hour.
Just before you serve, put a few sprinkles of sea salt on.
