Chocolate Merry-go-round Cake Pt 1

Here’s the cake Melinda requested. It’s a lot of fun to make and serve. And
I’ve never met anyone who was able to figure out how to make the layers
vertical rather than horizontal. Also, it’s from Maida Heatter’s Book of
Great Chocolate Desserts (though the phrasing is slightly altered by me).
Heatter is probably the best cookbook author ever when it comes to
desserts. I would swear by anything in her books even if I hadn’t tried it.
I *have* tried this one repeatedly and love it.

I also like this because you should make it the day ahead so it can be
served very cold (it slices better that way, too). Once you understand the
technique, you can use your favorite cake and frosting recipes if you
prefer. The key is to ensure there’s lots of contrast in color between the
two.

Line 2 buttered 10.5×15.5×1″ jellyroll pans with wax paper to cover bottom
and sides. Butter the paper.

Sift together [a]. Mix [b]. Beat [c] with an electric mixer at high speed
till pale lemon-colored. At low speed, beating only till smooth & scraping
bowl with rubber spatula each time, beat in half [a], then all of [b], then
rest of [a].

Beat together [d] at high to soft peaks. Gradually beat in remaining 1/2
cup sugar at medium, then beat at high to stiff peaks. Fold 2-3 large
spoonfuls into [abc] mixture, then 2-3 more spoonfuls, then fold in the
rest.

Spread equal amounts batter (approx 3 cups each) into each pan; make sure
corners aren’t thinner than middle. The layers will be quite thin. Bake 10
minutes in preheated 350F oven. Reverse pans top to bottom & front to back
bake bake 3-5 minutes more, till tops spring back when lightly pressed with
fingertip and pale golden color. Do not bake till brown.

Invert each pan onto a smooth (not terrycloth) linen or cotton towel. Peel
off paper linings and cover each with second towel. Cool while preparing
buttercream [see below].

Remove top towels from cooled cake layers. Invert the layers onto a cutting
surface. Spread each layer with buttercream all the way to the edges.
Carefully cut each layer into 4 strips the long way; they must be all be
the same width.

FORMING CAKE: Roll 1 cake strip with the filling on the inside into a tight
spiral (like a jellyroll). Add the second strip where the first left off
and continue rolling. Now place the roll on your cake plate with a flat
side down. Place a third strip where the second one ended and continue
rolling. Do the same with all the remaing strips; when finished it will be
the shape of a 9″-diameter cake that’s about 2-1/2″ high.

Beat reserved 2 cups buttercream briefly to soften slightly. Frost cake top
and sides. Refrigerate overnight or freeze. If frozen, wait till frosting
firm before wrapping it up. Thaw several hours or overnight in fridge
before unwrapping. Serve cold. Serves 12.

CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM: Stir together [e] constantly with wooden spatula in
small saucepan over medium heat till sugar dissolved and mixture comes to
fast boil. Wash down any undissolved granules on pan sides with pastry
brush dipped in water. Add chocolate; stir till smooth. Remove from heat
and let stand 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, cream the butter with an electric mixer. Beat in [f] well. Beat
in eggs well 1 at a time, scraping bowl sides as needed. Gradually add warm
chocolate beating at low speed only till smooth. Set aside.

When cooled cake layers inverted onto cutting surface, place the bowl of
frosting into a larger bowl partially filled with ice water. Stir frosting
well with rubber spatula till consistency of mayonnaise. Remove from ice
water. Set aside 2 cups frosting, spreading the