Chocolate Almond Cake with Chocolate Icing {Reine de Saba avec Glaçage au Chocolat}

Chocolate &almonds are a wonderful combo and when its laced with rum/coffee it makes all the more heavenly. The Baking Partners choice of recipe for the month is  Julia Child's Chocolate Almond Cake with Chocolate Icing. Swathi promptly sent us the recipe - well researched with detailed instructions to guide a first time baker.

When I started blogging a friend of mine suggested I read the book Julie & Julia. Never got around to read it ,but managed to see the DVD ..I still wish I got the book.

I have baked the  Chocolate & Almond combination cakes before - yet putting this together was an experience altogether Cake....This is a tribute to Julia Child on her 100th birth anniversary.
The ingredients I have used is same as listed in the recipe. To make it easier - my stand mixer and the hand mixer were both put to use.However, I shall take this step by step.
Separate the egg yolks and the whites -  Add salt to the egg white and start beating it slow and while it foams up add sugar a little at a time. Once the sugar has been incorporated increase the speed of the mixer and beat until the whites reach peaks.

Set aside a bowl with chocolate and rum in a pan and allow it to melt on slow heat - make sure chocolate does not burn.

Beat sugar and butter until creamy, add egg yolks one by one. Add in almond extract and the almond flour ,mix well. Add the melted chocolate , fold them all gently. Now add the stiff egg white   in parts and fold it gently - fold do not stir. The idea is to retain the air in the batter.

Now alternate flour and egg white and fold it in.

The batter now looks like this. Rich, creamy and airy as well.

Follow the pictures below. Pour the batter in a greased pan. Tap it gently on the table top - just to let out some hidden air pockets. Set to bake in the preheated oven - Use the oven temperature as appropriate to the gadget. Mine is a gas oven and I have set it at 170 degrees C. The cake rises to the rim at about 30 minutes, still wobbly at the center. A poker inserted comes out clean at the edge.While at the center - what you see is bits of crumbs ( and not sticky batter).

Take the cake out of the oven, let it rest for 10 minutes in the pan itself and then remove it to cool on a wire rack.As you can see my cake sank in the middle, I think it is the temperature - however this does not affect the texture or the taste of the cake.

Prepare the icing once the cake has cooled completely. I have used Kahlua instead of rum here in the icing. It sure tastes heavenly! Spread it with a spatula evenly - adjust the dents on the cake so that it gets a smooth spread of icing. Decorate with almond flakes.I did not refrigerate it as the air conditioners were on- hence let the icing set by itself. 

Now for the slice - the cake is dense yet soft,the butter in the icing makes the icing glossy and keeps it soft as well , not sticky to touch.

Just wow ! what more????????

Loved the experience of baking this cake - For obvious reasons I had Julia Child in mind - I had all the gadgets available to make my efforts easier , was wondering how she would've done it.
I truly salute her spirit !
Great choice of recipe Swathi :)