la belle mangeuse's birthday eats: wasabi cake

La belle mangeuse requested months ahead of time that I make green tea ice cream for her birthday. I decided, since we were going up to the mountains for a girls' weekend, that I would try to find an appropriately Asian-ish flavored cake to give her a proper birthday, hopefully something not-too-sweet since both of us solidly prefer the savory spectrum. I wanted something rich and interesting. When I searched for "sesame" and "cake" on Epicurious, the first response was the Black Pearl layer cake, which contained, of all things, a WASABI ganache. This clearly was the one. I adapted a little from the original.


Black Pearl Layer Cake

This, like the ice cream, is a plan-ahead kind of dish. The ganache needs to be made a day ahead of time, and the ginger syrup needs to rest for at least an hour before use. All the ingredients can be prepared ahead except the whipped cream frosting. I made all of it at home and whipped up the frosting and put it together once we got to the cabin. The ganache needs about 4 hours to set after you assemble the cake.

serves lots and lots because it's super rich and flavorful -- a tiny piece is enough!


Black pearl ganache
6 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 c heavy whipping cream
1 t ground ginger
1 T wasabi powder or paste (You can probably do even more than this. I didn't think the wasabi flavor was that pronounced in the ganache, though I tripled the amount of wasabi called for in the original recipe.)
2 T black sesame seeds (I couldn't find black seeds, so I used brown ones. Not as pretty, but still delicious!)
1 T corn syrup
2 T (1/4 stick) butter, room temperature

Ginger syrup
1 c water
1/2 c sugar
5 T fresh ginger, peeled and coursely chopped
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

Cake
2 c boiling water
1 c unsweetened cocoa powder
2 3/4 c all-purpose flour
2 t baking soda
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
2 1/4 c sugar
1 c (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
4 large eggs
1 t vanilla extract

Whipped cream frosting
2 c chilled heavy whipping cream
1/4 c plus 2 T powdered sugar
1/2 t vanilla extract
1/2 t ground ginger
Additional black sesame seeds


For black pearl ganache: Place chocolate in medium bowl. Bring cream, ginger and wasabi to boil in small pot. Pour hot cream over chocolate; cover with plastic wrap and let stand 15 minutes. Whisk cream and chocolate until smooth. Mix sesame seeds and corn syrup in small bowl to coat; stir into chocolate mixture. Let cool to lukewarm. Stir in butter. Cover and let stand at room temperature overnight to set.

For ginger syrup: Place 1 c water, sugar and ginger in small saucepan. Scrape seeds from vanilla bean into pan; add bean. I find it's easiest to do this with my fingernails. Don't worry, they're compulsively clean when I'm cooking! Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Simmer 2 minutes; remove from heat. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour for flavors to blend.
Strain syrup into small bowl. Chop ginger finely. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate ginger and syrup separately.)

For cake: Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour two 8-inch-square cake pans (or spray with Pam for baking). Line bottoms with parchment paper. Whisk 2 c boiling water, cocoa powder and reserved chopped ginger in medium heatproof bowl. Whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Using electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in large bowl until fluffy, about 1 minute. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating until incorporated after each addition. Beat in vanilla extract. Add flour mixture in 4 additions alternately with cocoa mixture in 3 additions, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Divide batter among prepared cake pans; smooth tops.
Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool in pans 5 minutes. Turn cakes out onto racks; cool completely. (Cakes can be prepared 1 day ahead. Wrap with plastic wrap and store at room temperature.)

For whipped cream frosting: Beat cream in large bowl until soft peaks form. Add sugar, vanilla and ginger. Beat until stiff peaks form.

Using long serrated knife, trim rounded tops off cakes to create flat surfaces. Place 1 cake layer, cut side up, on plate. Brush top with 1/2 the ginger syrup. Spread the ganache over top of cake. Place second layer, cut side up, atop first layer. Brush with the rest of the syrup. Spread sides and top with whipped cream frosting. Sprinkle top with black sesame seeds. Refrigerate until ganache is set, about 4 hours. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes before serving. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Keep refrigerated.)

I've never made a cake this complicated before, but it was 100 percent worth it. It was delicious and perfect with the green tea ice cream. *drool* Happy birthday, Ms. Mangeuse!