Let’s celebrate! Celebrate what? Nothing…something…everything? Today I want to celebrate nothing. That nothing is wrong with me or my loved ones. That my life is extremely ordinary, normal…chaotic and beautiful. That I have a lot to delight in and plenty to fret about. That I am able to eat, sleep, run, laugh, argue, feel, plan, hope and dream, like anyone else. We don’t realize but when we plan, hope and dream, in some ways we acknowledge that life will still be somewhat the same or perhaps be better. A virtual certainty! But tomorrow could be different. Life could change in moments! What we have is today and NOW! We do take life for granted, don’t we? It is so easy to get caught in the flow of our daily grind and forget to appreciate life for what it is. But life sometimes, has it’s own way of jolting you upright. Like speed bumps on the way. Sometimes you see them coming and sometimes they sneak up on you. And your otherwise smooth ride turns into a bumpy, messy experience.
I recently found myself on one such speed bump and my world turned upside down. A casual health checkup throwing up certain abnormalities, never ending tests, sleepless nights, an anxious family and me, living in denial for most part of it. Successive tests very very thankfully and to my utmost relief did not confirm any of it. I have the last few to go but I am hopeful. I have a strong support system around me and I couldn’t be more grateful. Amidst the chaos, I braved myself to stay put and lead a normal life to the extent possible. I continued to post though fewer posts and my photos and words definitely reflected my state of mind. I apologize if I have disappointed you lately. This blog, baking and most importantly your time and visit to my space means the world to me. This blogging community and my blogger friends mean the world to me. Staying away from this is hard for me as much as coming here and sharing a difficult situation with you. I’ve always liked it to be a happy, vibrant place filled with positivity and colours.
So I made a chocolate cake with a chocolate ganache and salted peanut filling. Something different. Don’t be surprised if you see that combination come up soon again because I am pretty obsessed with the salted peanut thing at the moment. I covered the cake in chocolate meringue (cocoa infused) and that made for a light, creamy, melt-in-your-mouth frosting, mildly tasting of chocolate. The cake is moist, chocolatey and intense with the presence of coffee in it and this totally complements the frosting. You will need a blow torch to brown the exterior which in my opinion is an inexpensive but good investment if you are into baking and desserts.
I hope to bake more and flood my blog with decadent treats in the forthcoming weeks. Thank you for bearing with me and giving me a reason to come back:-)
Chocolate Cake With Salted Peanut Chocolate Ganache And Chocolate Meringue.
Serves 8-10
Chocolate Cake (recipe adapted from Food And Wine)
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C. Grease two 7-inch round cake pans and line them with baking paper. Dust the pans with flour, tapping out any excess.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle, mix the flour with the sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt at low speed. In a bowl, whisk the buttermilk with the oil, eggs and vanilla. Slowly beat the buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients until just incorporated, then slowly beat in the hot coffee until fully incorporated.
Pour the batter into the prepared pans. Bake for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then invert the cakes onto a rack to cool. Peel off the baking paper.
Salted Peanut Chocolate Ganache Filling
150 g dark chocolate
1/3 cup thickened cream
1 cup salted roasted peanuts
Place chocolate and cream in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on medium for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds with a metal spoon or until smooth. Alternately, place the ingredients together in a saucepan over low heat. Stir in intervals till smooth and blended. Add the salted peanuts and mix.
Stand at room temperature until thickened (or pop it into the fridge for 10 minutes, if you are in a hurry)
Chocolate Meringue (adapted from the Food network)
3 egg whites, at room temperature
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
3/4 cup granulated, superfine sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 tablespoons unsweetened Dutch process cocoa, sifted
In a large bowl with an electric mixer beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the cream of tartar and granulated sugar 1 tablespoon at a time. Beat until the egg whites are stiff and shiny and the sugar granules cannot be felt in the whites. Beat in the vanilla, reduce speed to low and add cocoa until combined
To assemble, place one cake layer on a cake stand or plate. Spread a thick layer of the chocolate-peanut filling. Place the second cake layer on top. Cover with meringue frosting. Brown the frosting with a blow torch.
Ohhh Sonali, I am SO HAPPY to hear that everything is ok so far. I am praying for you to return to the ‘normal’ once again soon. I am sending you kisses & hugs from San Francisco, my lovely friend. Please keep all of us posted; we want to be there for you just as much. xoxoxo
Another positive side of this event is that it makes you love the ‘normal’ even more, don’t you? I was rush to the hospital 2 years ago for the sickness that ‘could’ be fetal. Luckily, I got there just in time and everything has been fine ever since. Though while staying in the hospital, it made me miss all the ‘normal’ and appreciate everything much more. So I guess there is a positive side for every situation 🙂
By the way, this cake is so scrumptious, and please give us more of your gorgeous dessert, whatever you want to make, whenever you want to make. 🙂
Huge hugs
Thank you my dearest Pang. You are so right! These things make you realize how unpredictable life can be. I have the two major tests coming up, on Friday and next Wednesday. Praying that all turns out fine. Hugs back:-)
i was just looking through a magazine listing charlotte’s best physicians and i said to my beau that i need to be more grateful (more often!) that neither of us have had any reason to be a patient at those places. wonderful post and stunning cake!
Thank you Grace! Cannot agree more.
That cake looks like the bomb.com! I celebrate life with cake all the time, totally normal at our house, so I can relate 🙂
Yesss…every celebration needs to be accompanied with CAKE! Thanks lovely:-)
A beautiful post and gorgeous cake to celebrate nothing…which is everything! I’ll take it for my celebration this week though 😉
Oh yes and forgot to say so glad everything turned out all right and healthy
Thanks my dear!
Ok, so YES to salted peanuts with chocolate, YES to celebrating nothing, and YES to good health. This cake looks incredible!!
Thanks lovely! Yesss!
Dear Sonali, I can imagine what a big relief it is to find out that everything is fine and don’t worry, soon you’ll be back to your “normal”! We are here to support you and admire your beautiful creations! <3
Thank you dearest Lili…your words and support mean a lot!
Fingers are crossed that you continue to get great news, Sonali. Best wishes, Ardith
Thank you so much dearest Ardith:-) Fingers crossed!
Oh my goodness – I am relieved and glad to hear things are okay with you. What a scare…and I totally agree with you. There is nothing better than to celebrate the everyday “ho-hum” because a calm, steady life is really something to be very grateful for. I’m grateful you’re still baking and sharing with us, too. The chocolate and salted peanut ganache? Perfect! And I love how you unexpectedly coated it in meringue! You are a master of that blow torch. Take care and sending you happy, healthy vibes!!
Thank you so much dearest Monica! Baking/cooking is therapeutic..it takes my mind off at least for sometime. The two big tests are on the way…praying that all goes fine!
I am glad that it was only a health scare, but I’m certain it puts things into perspective for you. This cake looks and sounds amazing! Perfect for celebrating life or a special occasion. Pinning.
Thank you so much Thao:-) You are absolutely right…kind of an eye opener for me!
Oh my God..Hope everything is OK dear. So so glad that things are good now. It’s very very tough when things like that come by and it makes us realize how life is precious. We have to enjoy and cherish, be thankful for every moment. I’ve learnt that too.
That’s a gorgeous cake you’ve put out for us. That meringue is just amazing and perfection.
Sending you loads of hugs and happy vibes.
Thanks so much my dear! Yes…life and family are precious. In my wildest imagination, I couldn’t think something like that could happen until it happened. Hopefully, it all remains fine.
I’m so sorry to hear what you’ve been going through and thrilled that the worst nasties have been ruled out. My fingers are cross and my prayers said that the rest of the tests will show nothing but good results.
When I read that you made a chocolate cake and topped it with chocolate ganache, I thought, “Oh yum but why does it look like that?” THEN I realized that you’d covered the lot with cocoa meringue. I’m absolutely in love with this.
Awww…thank you so much Maureen:-) I so appreciate your prayers!
Chocolate overload! You surprised us with that slice, Sonali! It looks moist and rich and chocolatey and chunky!
Julie & Alesah
Gourmet Getaways xx
Thank you Julie and Alesah!
So happy to hear all is well. I’m sorry you had to put up with at all. But I suppose it’s better to be safe. It is very true how much we take for granted and that’s why we have to stop and be thankful. I’m thankful you are ok. Take care of yourself and take all the time you need.
This cake, salted peanuts, meringue? Oh yum.
Thanks so much Nazneen! Yes..however annoying these tests are I am telling myself it’s for the better. I am literally at a doctor/specialist/imaging every other day. All is well that ends well!