Boca Negra

It's my wedding anniversary this week and instead of going out to celebrate, I typically asked my husband to come home for a nicely homemade dinner...and certainly, dessert had to be served for sure !

My hubby chose the butter rum cake over this boca negra which I was a bit surprised..anyway, though, I've thought that chocolate is always good for a celebration and more importantly, I personally wanted to give it a try, regardless of what my husband wanted..LOL..then here it comes..:)


The Cake ( slightly adapted from Dorie Greenspan's recipe )

12 ounces 70% dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
200 g caster sugar, divided
1/2 cup dark rum
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into 10 pieces, at room temperature
5 large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly butter a 9-inch round cake pan and line the bottom with parchment or wax paper; butter the paper. Put the cake pan in a shallow roasting pan and set aside until needed.

Put the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl and keep close at hand. In a 2-quart saucepan, mix 150 g of the sugar and the rum and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves and the mixture comes to a full boil. Immediately pour the hot syrup over the chocolate and stir with a rubber spatula until the chocolate is completely melted and the mixture is smooth. Piece by piece, stir the butter into the chocolate mixture. Make certain that each piece of butter is melted before you add another ( heat the batter up 10 sec a time in microwave to help the butter melted ).

Put the eggs and the remaining sugar in a medium bowl and whisk until the eggs thicken slightly. Beating with the whisk, add the eggs to the chocolate mixture and whisk until well blended. Gently whisk in the flour.

Baking the cake: Pour and scrape the batter into the prepared pan, running your spatula over the top to smooth it. Pour enough hot water into the roasting pan to come about 1 inch up the sides of the cake pan. Bake the cake for exactly 30 minutes, at which point the top will have a thin, dry crust. Remove the cake pan from its water bath, wipe the pan dry, and cover the top of the cake with a sheet of plastic wrap. Invert the cake onto a flat plate, peel off the parchment and quickly but gently invert again onto a serving platter; remove the plastic. Serve the cake warm or at room temperature.

Storing: Once cooled, the cake can be covered with plastic and kept at room temperature for 1 day or refrigerated for up to 3 days; bring to room temperature before serving. For longer storage, wrap the cake airtight and freeze it; it will keep for up to a month. Thaw overnight, still wrapped, in the refrigerator.