It’s an interesting, nutty, chocolately, not-too-sweet torte, but it is rather dry and rich so you need to serve it with plenty of sweetened cream. I served this one with Bailey’s Irish Cream which I thought worked splendidly. A perfect ending to a Christmas feast.
I am submitting this recipe to We Should Cocoa, a round-up of fabulous chocolate recipes co-hosted by The Chocolate Teapot and Chocolate Log Blog. All the recipes involve cocoa in some form and a special ingredient. This month the special ingredient is cinnamon and the challenge is hosted by Choclette at Chocolate Log Blog.
Base:
100g hazelnuts
100g pecans
75g unsalted butter, melted
50g soft brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Topping:
250g dark chocolate
100g caster sugar
150g unsalted butter
2 tbsp brandy
400g tin chestnut puree
juice of 2 clementines
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
250ml double cream, whipped
1 tbsp cocoa powder, to dust
Grind nuts in a food processor until coarse. Mix with remaining ingredients and press into a 25cm springform cake tin. Chill.
Melt chocolate in a bowl suspended over a pan of barely simmering water.
Beat sugar and butter together until creamy. Add the brandy, puree, juice and vanilla and beat again.
Fold in the melted chocolate and then the whipped double cream. Pour over the base and chill for at least 2 hours. Dust with cocoa powder and serve at room temperature.
Mum of three, daydream adventurer, OU Life Sciences graduate, occasional crafter, ex-pat Canadian & quite possibly Britain's most northerly food blogger.
lawstudentscookbook says
December 30, 2012 at 10:13 pmWhat a beautiful torte. I wish I could have a slice!
Hannah says
December 30, 2012 at 9:46 pmThis looks like th perfect way to finish a Christmas dinner! I’d much rather prefer it to Christmas pudding. I’ve bookmarked this page as I have a dinner party in January that I think this dessert will go perfectly with! Hope you had a great Christmas 🙂
Elizabeth says
December 30, 2012 at 9:54 pmI did have a great Christmas, thanks! I hope you did too. 🙂 Let me know how you get on with the torte!
Hannah says
December 30, 2012 at 9:45 pmThat does look like a perfect dessert for Christmas dinner, I’d happily trade it in for Christmas pudding any day! I’ve bookmarked this, I have a dinner party planned in January and think it’ll be the perfect end!
Phil in the Kitchen says
December 30, 2012 at 10:19 pmThat’s a lovely seasonal treat. I’ve got plenty of torn out recipes with no idea where they came from. Have a great New Year.
Choclette says
December 30, 2012 at 7:52 pmWhat a fabulous ending to the Christmas meal. I am a big fan of chocolate and chestnuts together and I like the addition of clementine to the mix. Even more I like your buttered nut base that the torte is sitting on, I’ve not come across that before. I hope you had a wonderful day and thank you for entering this into We Should Cocoa. Wishing you a very Happy New Year.