Chocolate French Pastry Cake Recipe

Ingredients

    * 1 cup sifted cake flour
    * 3/8 cup cocoa powder
    * 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
    * 12 large eggs, room temperature (yes, a full dozen)
    * 1/4 teaspoon salt
    * 1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
    * 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions

   1. Preheat the oven to 300°. Set a loose-bottomed or springform angel food cake pan to the side. Do NOT butter or flour the inside of the pan. DO NOT use a Bundt cake pan. *Note: if your angel food cake pan does not have a removable bottom, line the bottom of the pan with parchment.
   2. Sift cocoa, flour and half of the sugar together three times to fully incorporate cocoa into flour and sugar. Do not skip the triple sifting.
   3. Separate the eggs. In a large bowl, beat whites until frothy. Add the salt and cream of tartar. Continue to beat until the whites form soft peaks. Begin to add about half of the remaining sugar into the whites and beat until stiff peaks form. Do not over-beat. Beat the yolks in a smaller bowl until they are thick and lighten in color. This can take five minutes. Quickly and gently, fold the yolks into the whites.
   4. Add the vanilla. Fold in the sugar, and finally fold in the flour/sugar mixture.
   5. Pour batter into the prepared pan. Gently drop the pan one or two times from about one inch above the table.
   6. Bake for about 30 to 40 minutes. If the cake is not done, raise the temperature to 325 degrees and continue to bake about 5 to 10 additional minutes. Test the cake with a tester. If it comes out with no crumbs, the cake is done.
   7. Cool the cake UPSIDE DOWN for about 2 hours or until completely cool. Note: If your pan does not have a removable bottom, cool right side up. the cake will deflate a little, but it will still be good.
   8. Run a thin-blade knife around the pan both at the outside edge and the inside edge. Loosen sides and bottom and place on serving platter.
   9. There are several options for serving this cake: 1. Serve with fresh macerated strawberries, cherries or other fruit and whipped cream. 2. Frost with your favorite frosting. A good vanilla buttercream is great. Boiled icing works, too. 3. Slice a horizontal piece about 1½ inch from the top of the cake. Hollow out a trough in the middle. Fill with flavored whipped cream. Replace the top. Mix cake scraps with whipped cream and fill the center hole in the cake. Frost entire cake with more whipped cream. 4. Do with it what strikes your imagination.