Tuesday, November 17, 2009

When you least expect it




Okay, it's time to do something about this poor blog post.  It's a shame that I've left it languishing in my drafts folder (with nothing but pictures) because this dessert deserves so much better.  It is without a doubt one of my favorite Tuesdays with Dorie recipes so far.  If you haven't tried it, you need to.  And to think I almost didn't make it...

Which recipe am I talking about?  The Cherry Fudge Brownie Torte.  Or, in my case, cranberry instead of cherry.  Why?  Because I don't like cherries.  But that's okay, because this torte is fabulous with cranberries--the tartness is a nice surprise inside the sweet rich chocolate brownie base.  And I know that some people left off the mousse layer, but it really makes the cake.  It's light and fluffy and not very sweet and is an excellent contrast to the brownie layer.

The recipe was chosen by April of short + rose, and was supposed to be posted back on October 27th, but I had just returned from a whirlwind trip to Pennsylvania.  And I actually made it the first weekend in October.  When I first read the list of October recipes, I wasn't sure about making the brownie torte.  For one thing, it had cherries, and at first I couldn't think of a good substitute.  And the dessert is quite large, and I wasn't sure I wanted to make it just for us.  I could do a smaller version, like I have for some of the other TWD recipes, but I still wasn't sold on the idea.  But then we had a manager trainee at my branch.  And it was her birthday on the 5th.  I always make birthday cakes at work.  And she said she'd take whatever I wanted to make.  =)

I mostly followed the recipe, but of course made some substitutions.  As I mentioned, I used dried cranberries in place of the cherries.  I used rum to flambe them, and then added raspberry fruit butter instead of cherry preserves.  I used Ghirardelli 72% pieces for the melted chocolate, and folded in 4 ounces of Guittard 63% chocolate chips at the end.  My brownie baked for 45 minutes.  To dress things up a bit, I piped stars of the mousse on top of the brownie base.  It looked a bit plain, though, so I added chocolate shavings to the top as well.



The verdict?  Wow.  Like I said, this is one of my favorite TWD recipes ever, and I've made a lot of them.  It was a hit with everyone else who sampled it, too.  I will certainly be making this again, probably for the holidays (if I can wait that long).  I loved the cranberries with the chocolate (I'm not sure I've tried them together before) and the surprise bits of solid chocolate in the brownie part.  As I said above, I think the mousse is an essential part of the dessert.  It's not much by itself, but it's amazing paired with the brownie.  I really wish I had some more right now...

If you'd like to try this one for yourself, head on over to April's blog for the recipe.  And check out what the other TWD bakers have made this week.  (I didn't make another one of the November selections yet, so I'm playing catch-up with this one.)




15 comments:

  1. I agree, WOW! I loved this when I made it, it was sooooo good. Yours looks fabulous!

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  2. Totally decadent! Looks delicious.

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  3. It's beautiful! I'm so glad you posted this dessert. I didn't get a chance to make it, but I remember that you tweeted how much you enjoyed it. I'm putting a special flag on this recipe so that I make sure to rewind it.

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  4. I'm sure that was amazing... I so didn't expect such a great tasting cake when I made it!

    Very pretty the way you decorated it!

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  5. THAT is beautiful. This is one i skipped because of no time, but now may have to go back and bake.

    Beautiful!

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  6. I skipped a few of this month's selections too - but I went the all-chocolate route.

    I liked the brownies plain, although I seem to be in the minority on this one.

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  7. Wow, this is absolutely gorgeous! I would love a slice of it!

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  8. I must be missing out not being a tweeter. I don't even know how to tweet! This cake looks fabulous. I did not make it and now I am sorry I didn't after seeing yours. I could use a slice right now with my hot tea!!

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  9. Gorgeous torte! I love the way you decorated it. Glad it was a success for you.

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  10. I remember you talking about this one on Twitter. I never got around to making it, either. It looks terrific, though. Guess I better add it to the must try list.

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  11. I skipped this recipe and I never thought about making it with cranberries. I might have actually liked it if I had subbed in cranberries. It looks beautiful. love the way you decorated it.

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  12. With the piped rosettes - beautiful! I love the idea of substituting cranberries. Perfect fr the season.

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  13. I'm so glad you posted this cake - it's a great reminder of one of the top TWD chocolate desserts. Yours is stunning. I made a partial recipe, and as good as it was, I was very sad to see it end so soon.

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  14. I skipped this one back when TWD made it for many reasons - one of them being that I don't like cherries so I'm psyched to hear about your substitution! If it's really that good maybe I'll try it with cranberries - I know someone will eat it even if it's not me :) Yours look really beautiful!

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  15. this looks delicious. I m drooling!

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