Preparation Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 2 1/2 hours

INGREDIENTS

Almond and Vanilla Cake

• 450 g self-raising flour
• 80 g plain flour
• 70 g almond meal
• 400 g caster sugar
• 300 g unsalted butter, cubed and at room temperature
• 300 mL whole milk
• 6 large eggs
• 4 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons almond essence

Dark Chocolate Ganache Frosting

• 680 g good quality dark chocolate, roughly chopped
• 750 mL thickened cream
• 75 g icing sugar, sifted
• 100 g whole raw almonds

METHOD

Almond and Vanilla Cake

1. Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F fan-forced. Grease and line two 18 cm/7 inch cake tins.
2. In a large mixing bowl, sift the flours, almond meal and caster sugar together. Add the rest of the cake ingredients.
3. Beat on low speed for 1 minute to just combine, then beat on high for 3-4 minutes until batter is thick and creamy.
4. Pour batter evenly into the two tins, and bake on a central rack for 45-55 minutes, checking them at the 35 minute mark. Rotate the cakes halfway through baking. The cakes are done when a metal skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean but moist, and the tops of the cakes are golden.
5. Allow the cakes to cool on a metal rack for 10 minutes, then turn them out from the tins. Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes, preferably completely, before using a sharp serrated knife to slice off the domed tops and halve the cakes.

Dark Chocolate Ganache Frosting

1. In a medium heavy based saucepan, bring the cream just to the boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Once boiled, rapidly whisk in icing sugar and remove from heat.
2. Place chocolate in a large heatproof bowl, and pour boiling cream and sugar over the top. Cover with foil and allow to sit for 1 minute, then stir gently until smooth. Cover and refrigerate the frosting for at least 2 hours, until thick enough to spread.
3. While the frosting is cooling, roast the almonds on a lined baking tray for 10 minutes, until golden and fragrant. Allow to cool and then roughly chop and set aside.

To Assemble

1. Once the frosting has reached desired consistency, secure one cake layer to your serving plate with a small dollop of frosting. Spoon one cup of frosting onto the first layer, and spread evenly 1 cm from the edge of the cake.
2. Place the second layer on top, and repeat the process until you have frosted all the layers together. Make sure the layers are evenly stacked, then refrigerate the cake for 20 minutes to allow the frosting to firm up.
3. Remove cake from fridge, and cover with remaining frosting. Press handfuls of chopped almonds around the sides of the cake, scooping up the almonds that fall off and gently patting them back into the frosting until the whole side surface is covered. Use a small butter knife or metal spatula to spread the top surface of the cake into a spiral.
4. Cake can be refrigerated as needed, but bring to room temperature for 30 minutes before serving.

Store cake covered and refrigerated for up to 5 days.

NOTES:

-As usual, I baked the cakes ‘layer by layer’, so prepared 4 individual cakes to avoid the trouble of halving 2 larger cakes. If you do this, reduce baking time to 35-45 minutes.

-If possible, refrigerate the cake layers for 1 hour or overnight before frosting, to increase their stability.

-Brush the crumbs off of each cake layer before adding it to the stack, to avoid getting crumbs in your satiny ganache frosting!