Chocolate Cake with Saffron

Tried to resist... and I did... for a while, that is to say... until Sunday afternoon...
You've noticed there's been a whole series of savoury posts, and maybe even wondered what happened to my desserts. Have been making very few, to say the truth, some cookies ('cause I need them at least with my coffee in the morning), some muffins occasionally when there are some overripe bananas sitting around.
And then, the idea of a chocolate cake stuck like a mosquito in my head. Even though my husband told me I couldn't make any more cakes until I found a job, a new house, and a new car (phew!!!), I still made it!
It came out that I wasn't the only one craving it.
After the cake was done, I left it still in the baking pan on the stove top and went out of the kitchen.
10 minutes later,  two little hands holding a plate with a big slice of cake  each, stood in front of me with an ear-to-ear smile, "Look, we cut the cake on our own and helped ourselves". Proud and happy.
Little women growing up... But what was left of my cake looked rather like a battle field.
I thought I wouldn't be able to take a picture at all, but after some tailoring I managed to make it presentable.

The cake is very rich in texture and flavour (no wonder, with all that butter and chocolate), wonderfully moist.
I don't know if you've ever tried saffron in a dessert, I already have, several times. You may find it surprising, but it adds a little particular tone where you wouldn't expect it, in a sweet recipe, that is to say.
My kids loved it, I doubt you wouldn't, too. But just in case you don't like saffron, you may substitute it with some vanilla extract, rum or similar.

Chocolate Cake with Saffron

Cake
* 200 g dark chocolate (50% cocoa), melted and cooled
* 200 g butter, at room temperature 
* 4 eggs
* 80 g sugar
* 80 g flour
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 sachet of powdered saffron (the whole sachet is 0,125 g / 0,0044 oz)
* 50 ml milk
Zabaione
* 3 egg yolks
* 3 TBspoons sugar
* 60 ml sweet marsala wine
* a pinch of powdered saffron

Melt the chocolate in a microwave oven or over a saucepan with simmering water and set aside to cool.
Put the softened butter and the sugar in a mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer until creamy.
Add the eggs, one at a time, and then the saffron, the chocolate and finally the flour sifted together with the baking powder. Add the milk and mix just enough to have a homogeneous batter.
Pour the batter into a 22-24 cm springform, lined with baking paper, greased and floured (or you can bake it in a muffin tin to have a single portion cakes).
Level the surface and bake the cake in an oven preheated to 180°C for about 50 minutes (check with a wooden stick inserted in the middle), the cake should be baked, but still soft and moist, so don't overbake it.
Let it cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then move it to a cooling rack and let cool completely.

For zabaione, whisk the egg yolks and sugar in a small saucepan, pour in the marsala wine, add the saffron and then cook on low heat for a couple minutes stirring continuously until the cream gets slightly denser, soft and foamy.
Serve the cake with warm or cold zabaione.

Torta di cioccolato allo zafferano


Torta
* 200 g di cioccolato fondente
* 200 g burro
* 4 uova
* 80 g zucchero
* 80 g farina "00"
* 1 cucchiaino di lievito in polvere
* 1/2 bustina di zafferano in polvere
* 50 ml latte
Zabaione
* 3 tuorli d'uovo
* 3 cucchiai di zucchero 
* 60 ml di Marsala dolce
* un pizzico di zafferano in polvere


Imburrate e infarinate uno stampo a cerniera di diametro 22-24 cm.
Accendete il forno a 180°C.
Sciogliete il cioccolato nel forno a microonde o a bagnomaria, e lasciatelo raffreddare.
Lavorate il burro ammorbidito con lo zucchero usando uno sbattitore elettrico, finché cremoso e spumoso.
Unite le uova, uno alla volta, e poi lo zafferano, il cioccolato, e infine la farina setacciata con il lievito e il latte.
Versate nello stampo che avete preparato e cuocete nel forno caldo per circa 50 minuti. Verificate se la torta è cotta con uno stuzzicadenti infilato al centro.
Lasciate la torta nello stampo per 5 minuti, poi aprite lo stampo e trasferitela su una griglia e lasciatela raffreddare completamente.


Zabaione
Mettete i tuorli e lo zucchero in un tegamino e mescolate bene con una frusta a mano. Versate il marsala a filo e aggiungete lo zafferano. Mettete a cuocere a fuoco bassissimo per qualche minuto finché la crema sarà spumosa e soffice.
Servite la torta con lo zabaione caldo o freddo.

Ovomjesečna tema naše blogerske igrice, Ajme koliko nas je, jako me razveselila. Dilajla s bloga Svaštarica odabrala je šafran, jedan od začina koji volim i često koristim (koliko mogu, naravno, budući da se radi o najskupljem začinu na svijetu). Od rižota, do juhe, i raznih drugih slanih jela, lako nalazi primjenu kod mene, a nisam zaobišla ni slatke. Već ranije sam objavila recept za kuglice od ricotte sa šafranom, nedavno sam probala i krem desert sa šafranom i mangom, ostalo mi je naravno isprobati i ovaj za čokoladnu tortu.
Torta je odlična sama po sebi (tko ne voli šafran mogao bi je jednostavno malo obogatiti vanilijom, rumom ili sl.), bogate strukture i okusa, ali savršeno mekana i nimalo suha. Nije ju potrebno premazivati kremama ili filovati, ali jako fino paše ako je poslužite uz neku kremicu, poput zabaionea, engleske kreme, kreme od vanilije, šlaga i sl.  Šafran joj dodaje jednu nijansu okusa više.
Kod mene su je čak i djeca u slast jela. Čak što više, od nestrpljenja, skoro da sam ostala bez torte za slikanje  (ono što vidite na slikama iskrojeni su ostaci koje sam uspjela spasiti nakon što su je cure vješto izrezale)  ^__^

Čokoladna torta sa šafranom


Torta
* 200 g tamne čokolade (najmanje 50% kakaa)
* 200 g maslaca
* 4 jaja
* 80 g šećera
* 80 g brašna
* 1 žličica praška za pecivo
* 1/2 vrećice šafrana u prahu (cijela vrećica je 0,125 g)
* 50 ml mlijeka
Zabaione
* 3 žumanjaka
* 3 žlica šećera
* 60 ml slatkog marsala vina (ili prošeka)
* na vrh žličice šafrana u prahu


Uključite pećnicu na 180°C.
Kalup za tortu promjera 22-24 cm obložite papirom za pečenje, namastite i pobrašnite (umjesto torte, možete napraviti peći u kalupima za muffine, pa ćete imati pojedinačne tortice).
Nakidajte ili nasjeckajte čokoladu i otopite je u mikrovalnoj ili na pari. Ostavite da se prohladi.
Maslac sobne temperature umutite pjenasto sa šećerom.
I dalje muteći mikserom, dodajte jedno po jedno jaje, a zatim šafran, otopljenu čokoladu i na kraju brašno prosijano s praškom za pecivo.
Dodajte na kraju mlijeko.
Sipajte tijesto u pripremljeni kalup i poravnajte žlicom ili špatulom.
Pecite kolač u zagrijanoj pećnici oko 50 minuta - provjerite drvenim štapićem zabodenim u sredinu, torta treba ostati mekana i sočna.


Zabaione
Izmiješajte žumanjke sa šećerom.
Ulijte u tankom mlazu marsalu i dodajte šafran.
Premjestite smjesu u šerpicu (ili stavite iznad posude s kipućom vodom pa kuhajte na pari) i kuhajte na jako niskoj vatri miješajući pjenjačom ili drvenom žlicom dok se krema ne zgusne i postane pjenasta i mekana. Ako primijetite da se slučajno malo zgrušaju jaja, procijedite kroz gusto cjedilo.


Poslužite tortu uz hladan ili topao zabaione, možete i bez, ali iskreno preporučam kombinaciju