Ingredients
For the chocolate base:

• 70g of Bloc Gourmand dark chocolate with pecan nut chips
• 100g of melted butter
• 90g of sugar
• 60g of flour

For the chocolate cream:

• 1.5dl of milk
• 1.5dl of single cream
• 3 egg yolks (or 2 large ones)
• 50g of sugar
• 60g of Dégustation milk chocolate
• 60g of Pâtissier dark chocolate
• 1 sheet of leaf gelatine soaked in water

Coating:
• 120g of 72% cocoa dark chocolate
• 4cl of single cream
• 6cl of double cream
• 10g of butter
• 40g of sugar
• 6cl of water

Decoration:
• Cocoa powder
• A few caramelised pecan nuts

Recette par Claude-Olivier, 1001 Recettes

Base
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15min at 170°C
Set aside time: 30 minutes

Melt the chocolate with the pecan nuts in a bain-marie. Whisk the eggs and sugar in a bowl. Add the melted chocolate and mix, then add the butter and flour. Pour the mixture into a hinged baking mould (lined with greaseproof paper). Cook in the oven for about 15 minutes (fan oven if possible). The top should harden and form a crust, but not the inside! Take out of the oven and leave to cool a bit and then turn out on a large FLAT plate (leaving the greaseproof paper in place). Leave to cool.
That way the base will stay very soft, even if it does not seem wholly cooked to you. You can cook it a bit more if you prefer a dryer base.

Chocolate cream
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Set aside time: 30 minutes + 3 hours

Melt the chocolate in a bain-marie. Whisk together the eggs and sugar in a bowl until the mixture whitens. Bring the cream and milk to the boil and pour into the mixture and stir. Transfer to the saucepan and heat as if making a custard sauce. Once the mixture has thickened, remove from the heat and add the melted chocolate and the sheet of gelatine leaf.

Place a 22cm entremets ring around the base (ideally a fairly heavy one to prevent the mixture running). Leave the chocolate cream in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes (or until it thickens) then cover the base with it (I put a fairly heavy plate on the ring to stop it running) and place in the freezer for 3 hours.

Coating
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 10 minutes
Set aside time: 30 minutes

Break 70g of chocolate into little bits. Put them in a saucepan with the water, sugar, and double cream. Bring to the boil and stir until the mixture is smooth and thick. Remove from the heat and put to one side. Grate the remaining 50g of chocolate, heat the single cream (until it boils) and remove from heat. Add the grated chocolate a bit at a time and stir well. Leave to cool slightly, then add the butter cut into little knobs. Then add the chocolate sauce and mix.

Take the cake out of the freezer and remove the ring. Spread the coating using a rubber spatula. Do this fairly quickly as it sets rapidly. Place in the fridge. Before serving, sprinkle with cocoa and decorate with the pecan nuts. Eat immediately.

Tip: be careful when removing the cake from the mould as the base is only just cooked and so not very solid, meaning you cannot just lift it up! I have always found the simplest thing is to leave the greaseproof paper underneath to be able to move it after each stage. Otherwise you could use two wide spatulas. And don’t say I didn’t warn you;-) !