Chocolate armagnac cake
If food had ratings, like the MPAA ratings on movies, this cake would be rated R…not for nudity, language, drug use, or violence…but for the sheer adult pleasure that this cake provides. The complex flavors, the textures, so many, so much…it is almost overwhelming. Plus it was fun to make and included the opportunity to flambe…yes, I’m talking about playing with fire and you know how much fun that is.
The complex flavors can be traced back to the key ingredients of this cake: armagnac, prunes, and bittersweet chocolate…just telling the kids what was in the cake was enough information for them to shun it…which meant more for GH and I! Armagnac is like cognac except that it is made in the region known as Armagnac…thus its name. According to the salesman at Steve’s Liquor, it has a smokier flavor than cognac and those smoky flavors compliment the prunes and chocolate so well that it was a revelation. I could see using it as the liquor component in chocolate truffles, date nut pudding, christmas pudding…and I’m sure there is more. I don’t have much experience cooking with booze…usually if a recipe calls for it I either omit it or find a different recipe…but now I think I’ve been wrong, the dimensions of flavor that the armagnac brings to this cake are irreplaceable…without the armagnac it would just be a chocolate cake with prunes.
Ah yes, the prune part. Prunes don’t bother me…but I guess they have a reputation…well you know. It’s a shame really because I’ve had some fantastic food that contained prunes. In this cake the prunes are not even noticeable as prunes but they do bring a smooth sweetness and a fruity tang. It is a flavor that plays so well with the armagnac and chocolate. Plus I’m sure they contribute to the moistness and stickiness of the cake, two more of its admirable attributes.
There is always much talk on the internets about using high quality chocolate and while I would love to have an infinite food budget, the reality is that I don’t. As a result I rarely use the really good stuff for baking, instead I use either Baker’s brand or Trader Joe’s brand. In this case I used TJ’s bittersweet chocoalte and I think it performed very well. The chocolate flavor is intense and because of the power of the armagnac and the prunes I think using a more expensive chocolate would have been wasted.
This recipe came from Dorie Greenspan’s book, Baking From My Home To Yours and believe it or not I followed it exactly…well almost. The recipe calls for a 8″ spring form pan and I have no such thing so I used my 9″ round cake pan and it worked just fine. Also Dorie styles the cake as a a flat, slick, chic, cake and I decided to style mine more on a rustic note. She calls for the flat bottom of the cake to be the top and she doesn’t garnish it with pecans, but since their are pecans in the batter I decided it would be perfect and it was.
Chocolate Armagnac Cake
Adapted from Baking From My Home To Yours
by Dorie Greenspan
2/3 cup pecan pieces
¼ cup flour
¼ teaspoon salt
12 plump, moist pitted prunes
¼ cup armagnac
7 oz. bittersweet chocolate
4 oz. unsalted butter
3 large eggs, separated
2/3 cup sugar
Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter a round cake pan and dust it with flour. Fit the bottom of the pan with a round of parchment paper.
Chop the prunes into little pieces. Put the prunes in a small saucepan and add ¼ cup of water. Cook over medium heat until the water almost evaporates. Turn off the heat and remove the pan. Add the armagnac and light it on fire. The flames will die down after a few minutes.
Process the pecans, flour, and salt in the food processor until the pecans are finely ground.
Melt the chocolate in the microwave and add the butter. Stir well to combine and emulsify.
In a large bowl beat the egg yolks and sugar together until thick and pale. Stir the chocolate mixture into the eggs, then add the nut/four mixture, and then the prunes. Stir after each addition to combine.
Beat the egg whites into firm peaks and gently fold them into the batter. Fill the pan with the batter and bake for 20 minutes in a convection oven at 350°F or 30 minutes in a normal oven at 375°F. The cake is done when its top is firm and the edges begin to pull away from the sides. A knife inserted in the middle should be streaky.
Let cool on the pan for 5 minutes then invert on a rack and remove the paper. Continue to cool fully.
Make an icing with 3 oz bittersweet chocolate melted. Add to that 3 tablespoons room temp butter. Stir to combine. Add 3 oz sifted powdered sugar and stir until smooth. Chill until thick. Stir out any lumps and then ice the cake. Top with chopped pecans.
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10 Responses to “Chocolate armagnac cake”
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Your cake looks delicious! I really like the picture of the batter being swirled together.
I say if the TJ’s chocolate works for you, then more power to you! I’ve used the TJ’s pound plus bars for years for recipes just like this. I usually save the good stuff for chocolate candies, or fudges, or rich ganaches, or just eating.
Those prunes probably keep this cake nice and moist, I’d imagine.
I’d love to make this, but I live in an apartment and don’t really comfortable setting anything on fire :o) Do you think I’d get the same results without the flames?
Caty, thanks…it’s not often I remember to take photos as I make something.
Jef, I agree…the good stuff should be used for truffles and ganache…love ganache.
Jill, I think you would get a good cake…but the flaming does seem to infuse…or burn the armagnac flavor into the prunes. I think you could cookthem down in a combo booze/water mixture.
Definitely Adults Only…but then we should have some things to ourselves, shouldn’t we?!
Armagnac…I don’t actually drink it (maybe a sip) but I could sit and sniff it for hours….
You are making me feel quite faint!
Bring on that cake!
In my book you are the queen of desserts!
Katiez, I might drink it this winter since the only bottle I could get was pretty large…armagnac for life.
Holler, that’s me the benevolent queen of dessert…which means I get to say (wait for it)…let them eat cake! YeeeHaw!!!
I’d rate it NC-17 and would eat it up!
I was looking at this cake today in Dorie’s book and was wondering if it was good. After seeing your review and pictures I’d like to give it a try. It looks really good.
Yum! Searched the internet for a good chocolate prune cake and I think yours takes the “cake”! Will be baking this for a friend’s birthday on Wed, lets see if he and the other 30 guests will like it :)