Strawbery filled chocolate biscuit birthday cake

On July 28th our (best) friend Jennifer celebrated her 24th birthday. She didn't asked anything specific for her birthday but I couldn't go there empty handed, so... I baked her a cake. Not the usual, but some hard-labour-glittery-good-looking-one. After some research on the internet -and there is much cake info out there- I found a good recipe. It turned out to be a chocolate biscuit which I filled up with strawberrymousse and decorated with green fondant and red marzipan roses, and as a 'icing on the cake' (that fits well in the context): silver and gold sparkles.



Recipe for the chocolate biscuit (made a day before decoration):

- 1/3 cup / 40g cacao
- 2/3 cup / 80g flour
- 1 cup / 120g sugar
- 4 eggs
- pinch of salt
- 20 cm tin

1. Preheat oven to 180°C
2. Put the eggs in a bowl of hot (but NOT cooking) water.
3. In a large bowl, beat the eggs, sugar and salt on high speed of electric mixer for about 10 minutes, until light yellow coloured and lobed cream texture.
4. Scoop flour and cacao through egg mixture and pour batter into the cake tin.
5. Bake for 25 minutes and cool cake in oven until on room temprature.

Strawberry cream:

- 300 g strawberries
- 300 ml cream
- 3 tbls strawberry jam
- 4 gelatin sheets
- 50 g sugar

1. Puree half of the strawberries.
2. Soft gelatin sheets in cold water for 5 min.
3. Heat strawberry puree, jam and gelatin in a pan until gelatin is dissolved, let cool.
4. Combine the cream and sugar in a medium bowl. Use an electric mixer to whip to stiff peaks.
5. Chop other half of strawberries in small pieces and scoop with the strawberry/gelatin mix through whipped cream, you will get a nice marbled effect.


Decorating of the cake:

- 75 g melting chocolate (whatever taste you like, I used pure chocolate)
- 200 g coloured fondant
- marzepin and other decorating stuff

1. Cut the cake in two halfs, fill the cake with the strawberry cream and put the top back on the cake.
2. Melt the chocolate in the microwave for 2 min, 800 watt.
3. Butter the melted chocolate on the top of the cake and make it as smooth as possible, let dry in fridge.
4. Make a thin layer fondant by rolling, use powdered sugar against sticking.
5. Drape the fondant over the cake and fold until fitted.

Decorate as you like, be creative and use sparkles -a lot- because that makes your life even better!
To 'glue' the marzepin or other glitzaglitza onto your cake; use glaze (powdered sugar with a few drips of water).

And the result is shown above.