Chocolate Torte

For the past couple of years, we have participated in an "Iron Chef" competition. The Elder's quorum at church has put it on. One team has won overall judges choice every year, this year included. This year my team won overall people's choice. This is the dessert I created for our team. I made it up today from scratch and it won the judge's choice for dessert and the people's choice for dessert. I was told it was absolutely wonderful. I am so glad. I love to create new recipes.

Chocolate Torte

Chocolate Pound Cake

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups butter, softened
• 3 cups white sugar
• 5 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup hot water
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325'. Grease and cocoa (like you would with flour for a cake pan) a jelly roll pan.
2. Mix together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the hot water and buttermilk. Pour batter into prepared pan.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 20 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely.

***Note*** 3-14-13 So I made this for the Relief Society Birthday Party today and I added Nestle Dark Chocolate Morsels to this cake recipe to give it a little different twist. Oh my goodness. It was quite divine and I am going to be doing this from now on. It was wonderful.

Filling

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 8oz pkg cream cheese
• 2 cups homemade whipped cream
• 1 small box white chocolate instant pudding

Directions

1. Make homemade whipped cream (see below)
2. Microwave cream cheese for 30 secs in microwave safe bowl. Slowly add milk and mix with cream cheese.
3. Spoon whipped cream over cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle pudding over whipped cream. Mix together till fully incorporated.

Whipped Cream

Ingredients

• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoon powdered sugar

Directions

1. In a large bowl, whip cream until stiff peaks are just about to form. Beat in vanilla and sugar until peaks form. Make sure not to over-beat, cream will then become lumpy and butter-like.

Hershey's hot fudge or homemade hot fudge
Hershey's candy bar grated curls (using a vegetable peeler run over edge of chocolate bars to make curls)

To assemble the torte:

• Cut cake into three equal parts.
• Cut off the edges of cake.
• Spread hot fudge on top of each section of cake.
• Place one part of the cake with hot fudge spread on top, onto serving platter.
• Using a piping bag or the Pampered Chef Easy Accent Decorator with open star tip, pipe filling around top edges of cake on platter. With a spoon fill in center.
• Place next layer on top and repeat directions from above with next layer.
• On top of remaining layer, do a fancy border around edges and then fill in center with remaining filling.
• Now, you can put some hot fudge into piping bag and pipe a design on top or you can just drizzle hot fudge on top.
• Finish up with Hershey's chocolate curls.