Dark Chocolate Cake with Red Wine and Amaro/ Bad Day Cure

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Seeking Comfort

After a particularly stressful or draining day, many people begin thinking about what to do to decompress and comfort themselves. Some people choose to take a walk outside or work out. That’s fantastic for those of you who do that. Please let the rest of us know the secret to that kind of willpower. Others take a nice bath and listen to music. Some just jump into cozy clothes and cuddle up on the couch with the remote or a good book. But if you’re like me, your mind goes to something you’ll consume; specifically…wine. OR, maybe it’s chocolate. OR, it’s totally chocolate and wine together, which you will find combined beautifully in this lovely cake.

The Science of Mood-Enhancing Food

Let me tell you why this is the perfect “bad day cure.” First, it features two main ingredients that have actually been scientifically studied and found to improve mood.  Wine and chocolate-specifically, red wine and dark chocolate, both contain compounds that help to improve mood and stress levels. Cocoa contains a molecule called theobromine that acts as an antidepressant. Alcohol, in general, can trigger the release of endorphins, but red wine adds resveratrol, which can improve cognitive health and energy among other benefits. The consensus is that these foods should be eaten in moderation or the healthful benefits are reduced. There is also consensus that more study is necessary to prove the mood-enhancing benefits. Help out the medical community by making yourself this cake and take note of how you feel after eating it.  For those of you ready to present information to the contrary found in a different study, please just let me remain in the bliss of my confirmation bias. Bad day, remember?

Sweet Bitters

Just to make this cake extra “healthy” I added a wonderful Italian amaro to the filling. If you haven’t yet heard, mixologists are discovering amari as a delicious addition to cocktails to add depth of flavor. Amari (plural of amaro) have roots in the monasteries and abbeys throughout Italy. They are made from dozens of roots, herbs, spices, and flowers, and have been used in Italy for centuries as a digestif or health tonic. There are various brands and versions and you can use whichever amaro you like in this recipe. I use Cardamaro because it’s wine-based rather than spirit based, and has a pleasing bittersweet, nutty flavor. The addition of berries into the filling pairs so well with all of the flavors and makes it taste like a little cocktail–just to add to the festivities.

Perfectly Imperfect

This cake calls for a mirror glaze of chocolate over two layers of cake.  If you haven’t had much practice doing that, (as I have not), it will not come out perfectly.  However, I ask you-who really cares? It’s chocolate cake and wine. It will still taste great. Putting way too much pressure on ourselves for something inconsequential like that may by why we sometimes have these bad days in the first place.  

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Chocolate and Red Wine Cake with Cardamaro

Cure any bad day with this perfect combination of bittersweet chocolate and red wine. This recipe is adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine. 

Ingredients

For Cake:

• 8 oz. bittersweet chocolate at least 70% cacao, chopped
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 large eggs
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt

Filling

• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1/2 cup Amaro such as Cardamaro or Benedictine
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar
• 1/2 cup frozen blueberries or blackberries, thawed and mashed

Glaze

• 8 oz. bittersweet chocolate at least 70% cacao, finely chopped
• ¼ cup ½ stick unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ cup powdered sugar
• ½ cup red wine such as Pinot Noir or Cabernet Sauvignon

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 325°. Lightly butter and flour pan. Heat chocolate, sugar, and 1 cup butter in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (bowl should not touch water), stirring, until chocolate is almost completely melted, about 3 minutes; remove from heat and continue to stir until chocolate is completely melted. Let cool completely.
• Using an electric mixer on medium speed, add eggs to chocolate mixture 1 at a time, beating to blend after each addition. Beat until mixture has a mousse-like consistency. Reduce speed to low and add salt and ⅓ cup flour; mix until smooth. Scrape batter into prepared pan; smooth top.
• Bake cake until top is firm and edges are slightly darkened, 55–65 minutes (rely on visual cues; a tester inserted into cake’s center will come out clean before cake is truly done). Transfer pan to a wire rack and let cake cool completely in pan before turning out.

Glaze:

• Heat chocolate, butter, and salt in a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water (bowl should not touch water), stirring, until chocolate and butter are melted, about 5 minutes. Whisk in powdered sugar until smooth.
• Meanwhile, bring wine just to a boil in a small saucepan. Remove chocolate mixture from heat and whisk in wine; let cool until slightly thickened and a rubber spatula leaves a trail in mixture when stirring, 8–10 minutes. Set aside to cool.

Filling:

• While chocolate is cooling, whip cream in a cold bowl until soft peaks form.  Add the sugar, the amaro, and the berries and continue to beat until stiff peaks form.   

Assembly:

• Cut the cake in half using a piece of thread-sawing back and forth carefully through to get layers as even as possible.  Spread the amaro cream over the bottom layer, flip the second layer so that the even bottom of that layer is now the top layer of the cake.  Place it carefully over the cream. 
• Put cake on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet. Pour glaze over cake and spread it across the top and over the edges with an offset spatula. Let cake stand at room temperature until glaze is set, 2–3 hours.