Chocolate Tourta with five spices

A delicious chocolate dessert which will spread wide smiles to your guests! In Greece various types of "Tourta" ("Tourtes" in plural and probably the name derives from the Italian word "Torta") is the most common and very popular dessert all year round to serve on special occasions and not only. What we call "Tourta" is the kind of dessert which combines layers of sponge cake ("padespani" or "pantespani" in Greek) and then filled for example with cream and fruits etc and then decorated accordingly. There are cases, though, that no sponge cake is required as a base, like in the recipe I have for you here. Tourtes are the best birthday type of cakes in Greece and they are very different than those in the US or over here in the UK. Saying "Birthday cake" in Greece and you mean "Tourta" in every possible flavour, colour or shape you can imagine! To be honest, and no offence please, I was never really a fan of the birthday cakes they make in the US or the UK... I always find the cake rather dry in texture and the combination of the dried fruits inside and the frosting decoration on the outside... Sorry guys but not my cup of tea... The only exception for me is the Xmas cake and that's all I can handle once a year... Don't hold it against me though... The tourta recipe I'm giving you today will make amends:-))

Recipe of Fotis Chryssanthidis,
a promising young Pastry Cook in Greece
From "BHMAgourmet" magazine of "TO BHMA" newspaper (2010)

Ingredients (for 10 people)

For the base:
50gr. of milk chocolate
70gr. blanched almond meal (ground almonds)
70gr. of ground hazelnuts
90gr. of icing sugar
2 medium eggs, the whites
60ml of cream (35% fat)

For the cream:
350gr. dark chocolate, cut in very small pieces (55% cocoa solids)
100ml of fresh milk
50ml of cream (35% fat)
10gr. of mixed ground spices like cinnamon, cardamon, cloves, anise and sweet paprika
380ml of cream (35% fat), whipped into a thick and velvety consistency
Plenty of unsweetened cocoa powder for dusting

Method

For the base:
Preheat the oven to 180°C.

Melt the milk chocolate in a bowl with the "bain-marie" method.

In another deep bowl combine the rest of the ingredients of the base together, add the melted chocolate and stir well. Empty the mixture into a springform pan of 20cm diam. (the height of the mixture should be 1cm)Put in the oven and bake for 15 minutes or until a knife pushed into the centre of the cake comes out dry and clean. Gently take the cake out of the pan and place it on a  rack to cool.

For the cream:
Put the chopped chocolate in a deep bowl.

Put the milk, the 50ml of the cream and the spices in a saucepan in medium-low heat. When they come the the boil empty the mixture into the bowl with the chopped chocolate. Using a spatula stir well the mixture until the ingredients are well blended and the chocolate completely melted. Add the whipped cream into the mixture and gently stir again to blend.

Assembling:
Transfer the cold base of the tourta in a springform of 22cm diameter. Carefully spread the cream on top using a spatula. Transfer the tourta in the fridge and leave for a few hours until it is well set and firm.

Take off the sides of the springform and serve dusting on top each portion with plenty of cocoa powder.