Holiday Pine Cone Chocolate Cake
- Author: gartblue
- Filed under: Heavenly Bake-Through
Dec 28,2009
Having given the Gingerbread cake a miss, I was so eager for this. I even made this like 6 days before it was due and then posted a day late. Klutz!
Anyhow. For weeks I was torn in decisiveness. I wanna make the cake and the ganache. But I wasn’t sure of the fondant. I made Rose’s Chocolate Fondant from the Cake Bible many moons ago and it was seriously tasty but I had a lot of leftovers and after months in the freezer, I had to toss it.
Worse, this is the rainy season in Malaysia at the moment and it’s like 90% humidity here, so any fondant work is bound to fail. Weather rules aye. Not my laziness. It’s the weather!
So, I decided to make the roulade and everything else and not the fondant. The ganache was easy enough although I had a major issue with too small a food processor. But it yielded a lot of ganache for a little cake and from the picture you can tell that it’s more ganache than it was cake. But I like!
The cake was easy enough. 7 minutes was hardly time to even wash up.
So, I just lathered on the ganache and then rolled it back and frosted it with the remaining ganache.
Scrumptious!
The completed Non-Pine Cone Chocolate Roulade.
Seriously! I need to get some serious food processor here! I’ve been surviving on this teensy weensy food chopper, actually. This was meant to puree baby food for my babies, Adani who’s now 6 and the last baby Ariz who will be 5 on valentine’s Day. I can see you smirking. *wags finger* Sigh!!
The Ganache. I absolutely love this ganache. The chunks of almond made it all the better, although putting them on the bare no-so-pine-cone was a little none too pretty. This tasted just wonderful. I found myself licking it every now and then. And then I founds my girls been licking it off the bowl in the fridge, where I left it to stiffen a bit.
Beaten eggs. Did I tell you how big a fan I am of KitchenAid? I am. A huge, huge fan! It takes tasks like this effortlessly. What’s missing is a Beater Blade. Now, is MrGart reading this??
My favourite vanilla essence. I got this at CakeConnection where I teach the cookies class and I haven’t gone back to my usual brand. It does make a huge difference on everything that requires a spoonful of vanilla essence. Seriously!
Verdict! Ganache was superb!
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14 Responses for "Holiday Pine Cone Chocolate Cake"
I’m in total agreement about the ganache. I think I would give up the other two components and just sit happily with a big bowl of chocolate almond ganache in my lap.
Gartblue, I think it is time for you to get the food processor. And thanks for the recommendation about vanilla. I’ll give it a try, assuming I can find it.
marie .. nodding head in agreement furiously! the vanilla comes from australia and I’m not sure if you can find it where you are .. good luck!
I did really like the ganache, but I guess I found it overwhelming in the cake roll. Maybe I needed more cake to the amount of ganache.
I think you were smart to leave off the fondant–except for trying for a spectacular presentation (which I didn’t think mine achieved), it doesn’t add to the cake. In my opinion, of course…
Love the ratio of ganache to cake!!! And I actually think the ganache makes a better impersonation of a pine cone than the fondant (well, at least in my attempt).
The Queen Vanilla Extract is definitely a blast from the past. I didn’t realise they exported from Australia.
And I will sign any petition that you may have to get a new food processor. Though I found that the promise of many a cake and pastry facilitated a very rapid purchase! I love my Magimix – can’t recommend it enough. I have the 4200 which is a great Goldilocks size – not to small and not too big.
Good luck.
Love your roulade! Yes, ganache = heaven as far as I am concerned, too!
barbara … think it’s an all-around consensus that the ganache was great … i have not found a ganache that I don’t like in HCB ..
nicola .. i actually thought I made too much but I was spot on with the measurement. It sure does make an impersonation of a pine cone .. hmm .. that picture was taken after it’s thawed to room temperature and I like it that it’s still stiff enough to frost .. mind you, room temperature here is around 30C.
NancyB .. I’m with you on this. Though I like the ganache a lot, it soon became too much because I can’t taste the cake at all. what cake?
This looks great! I sympathize a bit on having the weather interfere. I made a batch of candy that never set up and had to throw the whole thing away…and this was on a dry cool Bay Area day! ARGH. So I totally understand why you would not want to make it in REAL humidity.
rachelino .. that’s what I always tell my hubby .. it’s not the heat that kills a fondant, always the humidity .. i had to work with some fondant for a batch of cookies and it got sticky and yucky and sweated and all … I’ll wait for january then ..
Really good idea using the ganache as the outer layer. I am in total agreement that is is a delicious recipe. My hats off to you for baking in such high humidity.
vicki .. can’t move to a drier climate .. so must make do ..
hi…i am noni, i’ve studied about vanilla essence and i just want to tell u that the one that u use is non halal…if u check any vanilla essence or extract that contain vanilla extract, it is considered as non halal because it contains alcohol…u can check with jakim because they have proposed that if any ingredient contain “vanilla extract” it is considered as non halal…it is very,very,very,very difficult to find vanilla essence that is halal…i have tried so hard to find vanilla that is halal, the one and only that we can use is start brand vanilla essence which i can say, it does not taste as good as the the one that contain alchohol…i am sorry to tell u this…i do really care about this and i hope u do care to…
p/s: org yg jual kat cake connection tu kate halal, but i’ve done banyak research ttg vanilla, it is definitely tak halal…sorry…
noni .. thanks for the heads up .. but i’ve read and reread the ingredients list and there’s no traces of any alcoholic components .. i guess if you’ve done the research and you know, then it’s fine to avoid it .. but as yet, I’ve not found evidences to disprove that. i’ll keep looking though.
Congrats on being Featured Baker. Your cake looks delicious. No wonder if it was eaten in no time
)
hanaa … cheers .. and your whipped cream cake was a sure winner!