180g Montezuma Dark Chocolate (I used the buttons)
250g Cotswolds Plain Flour
250g Golden Caster Sugar
1tsp Bicarbonate of Soda
½ tsp Salt
2 Eggs
175g Sour Cream
75ml Cherry Liqueur
300ml Double Cream
2tbsp Icing Sugar
6tbsp Cherry Juice
½ a jar of Cherry & Amaretto Jam from Cherry Tree
Fresh Cherries
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 160 no Fan. Line 3, 6” cake tins
Slowly heat the butter and chocolate together in a pan until the chocolate is fully melted, then leave to one side to cool
To the bowl of your stand mixer, add the flour, sugar, bicarb and salt. Mix together
Whisk the eggs and sour cream together in a separate bowl until smooth then slowly whisk in the chocolate mixture. Add this to the dry ingredients and set your mixer going slowly to fully incorporate. Add the cherry liqueur to loosen the batter
Divide between the three tins, level off the tops and bake for 25-30 minutes until risen and cooked through. Allow to cool slightly in the tins before removing to a wire rack to cool fully
To assemble, you may need to level the tops of the sponges with a knife (the offcuts can be devoured later). Gently heat 2tbsp of the cherry jam with 2tbsp more of the cherry liqueur and slather over the tops of the three sponges
Add the double cream, icing sugar and cherry juice (this can be more of the jam and liqueur mix if no cherry juice is available) and whisk until firm peaks appear
Place one sponge right side up on a serving plate and pipe or spread a ring of cream around the outside. Fill the middle with jam. Repeat this on one more of the sponges having placed it on top of the first. For the last sponge, invert so the baked bottom is now on top and pop it on top of the stack. Decorate the top with the rest of the cream however creatively you feel and top with fresh cherries
