Preparation method

Sponge:

• Pre-heat oven to 180 C
• Grease and line 2 sheet pans (36x42cm)
• Cream butter
• Add castor sugar to butter, a little at a time
• Add eggs, one at a time
• Sift cocoa powder and combine into butter mixture
• Add coffee granules to batter and combine well
• Spoon batter into sheet pans, tap tray to settle batter
• Bake for 10-15 minutes - sponge must lightly spring back
• Remove and leave to cool
• Once cool cut into 4 x 20cm circles
• Spread dark chocolate over one sponge circle, allow to set

Praline mousse:

• Melt the sugar, without stirring, to a caramel
• Add pecans to caramel. Place on baking tray and allow to cool
• Crush 3/4 of praline. Reserve a few shards for decorations
• Bloom gelatine in water
• Melt the chocolate
• Boil the milk, cream cheese and salt, then remove from heat
• Whisk the bloomed gelatine into the milk
• Emulsify and whisk the hot milk into the melted chocolate
• Allow to cool
• Whip the cream and hazelnut syrup and hazelnut essence to soft peaks
• Fold cream into cooled chocolate mixture, with 3/4 of the crushed praline

Cherry jam:

• Boil the cherries (including the syrup), sugar and lemon juice
• Take 60ml of the canned cherry syrup and mix with cornflour
• Add the cornflour mix, cherry oil, almond essence and food colouring to the cherries
• Bring to boil and stir until thick
• Transfer to shallow dish and cool

Cherry syrup:

• Whisk all the ingredients
• Reserve for later use

Ganache glaze:

• Bloom gelatine in water
• Heat cream and sugar and allow to boil
• Add glucose and cocoa powder and mix well. Blend well until combined
• Remove from heat and add gelatine
• Transfer glaze to shallow dish, allow to cool

Red mirror glaze:

• Bloom gelatine in water
• Boil glucose, sugar and water
• Remove from heat, add gelatine and condensed milk
• Pour mixture over chocolate. Blend very well
• Add red food colouring and cherry oil
• Transfer to shallow dish and cool

Cherry buttercream:

• Cream butter
• Add sifted icing sugar and acti-white powder, mix well
• Add milk, cherry oil and food colouring to icing mixture
• Transfer to bowl and set aside

Cherry chocolate bark:

• Melt dark chocolate
• Melt white chocolate
• Add cherry oil to white chocolate
• Cut into small pieces
• Place dark chocolate onto baking tray
• Add melted white chocolate to dark chocolate and make a swirl pattern using skewer
• Add pieces of glazed cherries to chocolate
• Sprinkle with red and bronze glitter
• Place in fridge to set

Assembly:

• Grease and line a 20cm spring form tin
• Place 1st sponge circle (with chocolate base) down
• Coat sponge with cherry syrup
• Pipe praline mousse onto sponge
• Cover mousse with cherry jam
• Place 2nd sponge onto filling
• Coat sponge with cherry syrup
• Pipe praline mousse onto sponge
• Cover mousse with cherry jam
• Place 3rd sponge circle onto filling
• Coat sponge with cherry syrup
• Pipe praline mousse onto sponge
• Coat mousse with cherry jam
• Place 4th sponge circle onto filling
• Place in freezer for 45 minutes
• Remove cake from tin
• Cover the cake in buttercream
• Freeze cake for about 15 minutes
• Pour ganache over cake
• Dip knife/cake lifter into red mirror glaze, sweep in one motion over dark glaze
• Drizzle more over if needed
• Place in fridge fro 10-15 minutes
• Carefully transfer cake to cake board
• Decorate with chocolate bark, praline shards, cherries and edible glitter