INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

CAKE
THE CRUSH
This looks like a light, moist butter cake; in truth it's a substantial,
very chocolate, white chocolate cake.  The whimsical name derives from the
action of patting the edges of the cake down to level and ready them for
the crush, a mixture of berries and sugar.  White chocolate, not really
chocolate by definition because it doesn't contain chocolate liquor, is
finicky.  It can look pretty gloppy when you're melting it - and it burns
easily - but it's rich taste always rewards the extra care it demands.
When buying white chocolate, make sure you choose a brand that contains
cocoa butter.
CAKE: Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to
325F.  Brush the bottom and sides of two 9-inch round cake pans with a
light coating of melted butter, line with parchment paper rounds, and
lightly butter the paper; set aside.
Heat an inch of water in the bottom of a double boiler.  Put the
chocolate. butter, and the 2 Tbsps. water in the top of the double boiler
and heat over low heat, whisking all the while, until the chocolate and
butter are melted.  The mixture may seem broken or curdled, but it will
come together almost completely when it is whisked (If it doesn't, the
cake will still be fine.)  Remove the pan from the heat and whisk
vigorously to blend.
The ideal method for mixing this cake is to beat the yolks and 1/2 cup
of of sugar together, then keep them mixing on low speed and, while
they're mixing, beat the whites in another bowl.  If you have both a
standing and a hand-held mixer, you can do it this way.  If not, follow
these instructions for whites first:  In a mixer fitted with the whisk
attachment, whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks, about 3
minutes. Still beating, and 1/4 cup of the sugar, and continue mixing
until the whites are stiff but still shiny, 2 to 3 minutes more.  Gently -
very gently - transfer the meringue to another bowl and begin work on the
yolks.
Working in the mixer (there's no need to wash the bowl), this time
fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the 10 yolks and the remaining 1/2
cup sugar on high speed for 2 minutes; scrape down the bowl and continue
to beat for 2 minutes more, or until the mixture is slightly thickened and
pale yellow.
Add the melted chocolate to the yolks and increase the mixer speed to
medium; beat for about 30 seconds to blend.  Remove the bowl from the
mixer and, working with a rubber spatula, gently fold in the sifted cake
flour. Pile 1/3 of the egg whites onto the mixture and stir them in with
the spatula to lighten the batter.  Gently fold in the remaining whites.
Baking the Cake -- Divide the batter between the two pans and smooth the
tops.  Bake for 26 to 28 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the
center of the cake comes out clean.  Transfer the cakes to cooling racks
and let them stand for 20 minutes.  Invert the cakes onto cardboard cake
rounds (or the rounds from tart pans with removable bottoms) can cool to
room temperature, with the parchment rounds still in place.  When the
cakes are completely cool, remove the parchment paper, cover, and
refrigerate until needed.  *Covered well with plastic wrap and
refrigerated, the cake layers can be made 2 to 3 days in advance; they can
be frozen up to a month.  Thaw, still wrapped, at room temperature.*
The Crush: Put the frozen raspberries, sugar, and lemon juice in the
work bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade ands whirl until
smooth, 15 to 20 seconds.  Push the mixture through a strainer;  You
should have about 1 cup.  If you want, you can make more raspberry crush
and use the extra as sauce to decorate the plates.
Finishing the Cake -- To finish the cake, remove the layers from the
refrigerator and press down on the edges with your fingers, patty-cake
fashion.  Spoon half of the raspberry crush onto one of the layers and
spread to even.  Top with the other layer, spoon on the remaining crush,
spread it to smooth, and top with fresh berries, placing them close
together in a single layer.  The cake should be refrigerated until just
before serving time, or for up to 8 hours.  Bring the cake bake to a
little cooler than room temperature before serving.
To serve, if you've made more crush, drizzle some in an abstract pattern
on each dessert plate, and top with a slice of cake.  To get a clean cut,
heat the blade of a serrated knife under hot running water and wipe the
blade dry before each cut.
Storing -- The assembled cake can be refrigerated for about 8 hours
before serving.  Bring the cake back to a little cooler than room
temperature.
Posted to EAT-L Digest 18 November 96
Date:    Tue, 19 Nov 1996 14:40:16 -0500
From:    Rosebud <janetm@ONLINE1.MAGNUS1.COM>

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