TWD: Chocolate Banded Ice Cream Torte

WooHoo! This week it was my turn to choose for TWD, and boy what a hard decision that was. I conferred with my best friend and fellow TWDer Stacy and of course my hubby. We poured over Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan for about 2 months. I finally narrowed it down to 2 choices and this was the favorite. (I think the picture helped.)

Since this recipe is a grown up ice cream cake, I decided to make only half the recipe and make it in two 4 inch spring form pans. I chose to do strawberry instead of raspberry because it was my turn to choose and I wanted strawberry! I used Talenti tahitian vanilla bean gelato for the ice cream. (Another good reason to make only 1/2 recipe. Boy this stuff is not cheap, but oh my goodness so worth every penny.) And I used cream de casis liquor.

We absolutely loved this torte. It was amazing with it's richness. The frozen ganache added just enough texture to the melting ice cream that you could chew it. This will definitely be made again in my house for dinner parties. I can't wait to experiment with other flavors.



Chocolate Banded Ice Cream Torte
1 3/4 (14 tbsp) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsley chopped
1/2 cup sugar
8 large eggs
1 10-ounce package frozen raspberries in syrup.
1 tbsp Framboise Chambord or other reaspberry liqueur(optional)
1 quart premium-quality ice cream.
1 pint fresh raspberries, for decorating(optional)

GETTING READY: Oil or lightly spray an 8 or 81/2 inch sprinform pan

Put the butter and chocolate in a heatproof bowl, set over a saucepan of simmering water and warm the ingredients, stirring occasionally, until they are melted. Be gentle with the heat you don't want the butter and chocolate to separate.
Transfer the bowl to the counter, whisk in the sugar and let the mixture cool for about 5 minutes.

Whisk the eggs into the chocolate mixture one at a time, whisking well after each addition. Rap the bowl against the counter to de-bubble the ganache, and pour one third of it into the springform pan.Freeze at least 30 min. to set the ganache. Press a piece of plastic wrap againt the surface of the remaining ganache and keep it in on the counter.

When the first later of ganache is set, start making the raspberry ice cream. Puree the raspberries in a food processor. Add the liqueur, if you're using it, and pulse to incorporate. Spoon the ice cream into the processor and pulse just until it is blended with the puree-don't process so long that the ice cream melts.

Spread half the ice cream ouver the ganache layer, return the springform to the freezer and freeze of at least 15 min. Scrape the remaining ice cream into a bowl, cover it with plastic and put in the freezer. Don't wash the processor yet- you might need to soften the ice cream again.

When the raspberry layer is set, pour half of the reamining ganache over it. Return the pan to the freezer for another 30 minutes.

When it's time to spread over the next layer of ice cream, beat the ice cream with a wooden spoon or, if it's too frozen to soften to spreadability with the spoon, scrape it back into the processor and whir for a few seconds. Spread the last of the raspberry ice cream over the truffle layer and freeze for at least 15 minutes.

Finish by pouring the remaining ganache over the ice cream. Jiggle and tilt the pan to even the layer, then cover the pan with plastic wrap and freeze the torte for at least 6 hours.

TO FINISH: About 30 minute or up to 3 hours before serving time, unmold the torte. I used a hot kitchen towel and wrapped it around the pan for 10 seconds. The torte came out perfectly. If you need to pop it back into the freezer for 30 minutes so the warmed sides can re-firm.

If you want to decorate the top of the torte with circlets of fresh berries, do this right before serving. To soften the truffle layer just enough to hold the betties, warm the top with a quick puff of air from the hairdryer, or run a long knife under hot water, wipe it dry and pass it quickly over the top of the cake. Arrange the berries over the torte, put the torte on a platter and head for the table.



Don't forget to check out the TWD blogroll for more experiences with this amazing torte.