The tiered cake was 6”-8”-10” Deep Choc Passion with milk choc syrup and white chocolate mousseline.  It had a smooth bc base and was decorated with chocolate polka dots- large choc chips.  I was looking for a low-risk way to try my first tiered cake, so this was an 8 & 9 year old girls’ end of season soccer banquet.  I figured if it didn’t work out, they’d still be happy and eat it, and I wouldn’t have ruined someone’s birthday or other big event.  In the end, it turned out very well and I’m glad I did it, I learned so much… but it was a bit overwhelming and I forgot the camera.

It sounds amazing!  It sounds like a great blend of flavors.  Did you decide on all the flavors yourself or is it a recipe?

The recipe is only a slight variation on the Deep Chocolate Passion wedding cake in RHC.  The cake and syrup were from that recipe.  It is photographed with the shiny dark chocolate glaze, but the recipe lists a variation with white chocolate-vanilla bean frosting.  I just swapped one white chocolate buttercream for another.

It sounds amazing. I know I use that term a lot but there is no other word to describe it.

That is what I find to be so fantastic about Rose’s books.  The recipes allow for individuality, experimentation and growth.  Perhaps I never realized this but I never saw it in any other book.  I think the reason I now see it in Rose’s books is because reading her books and posting on this forum is like having your own private tutor

MJ, not only private tutor but also personal audience - that comprises of people who are as passionate about baking (and about Rose’s recipes) as ourselves. I don’t know of any other cookbook author that has that.

Neither do I! I think it gives people a feeling they are not alone in this.  I like that

Anne in NC - 04 November 2010 03:35 PM

Hey, MJ, and if you love banana bread, try the Cordon Rose, but I swear, I’d use all butter and use the full 1/2 c. sour cream option.  It is so moist and delicious!  I don’t know what comments could have made anyone think it wasn’t moist and needed to be modified with oil!!!  And the lemon zest makes it so wonderful!

Finally!!! Here it is Anne.  I made this last night, Cordon Rose with Milk Chocolate Ganache, both from TCB.  It is very yummy and I know this will be among one of the regulars I bake.  Although the cake isn’t that sweet, the ganache makes up for it and it is the perfect blend, IMO.

That looks sooo luscious, MJ!  I especially love the look of the slice, you can see the texture and I can just imagine the flavor, yum.

Thank you Julie! The ganache was a little too thin. Mistakenly, I stirred it before it was ready.  I tried whisking it.  I need lessons in cake frosting-desperately

I only have two tips for ganache: the first is to make it in the food processor if possible, as the smaller the bits of chopped chocolate are, the smoother the final ganache.  Yours looks perfectly smooth.   And I never would have known that you weren’t going for a smooth, shiny glazed look if you hadn’t told me.

The second tip is to make it the night before and let it sit out on the counter overnight to firm up.  Whenever I rush the cooling, I get a less smooth texture, sometimes even downright lumpy. 

I’m a big believer in leaving things out on counters- buttercream to warm up, ganache to cool down, and bread bigas to develop extra flavor.  I also leave beaten butter and italian meringue out on the counter for an hour or two to equalize in temp before combining them in mousseline.  There’s just something so appealing about covering a bowl, walking away, and doing something else while time and temp do the work for you.

I will have to plan this next time.  I made swirls but they melted.  I made the ganache in the processor but I started it when the cake was in the oven and frosted the cake 3 hours later. Next time, I will definitely plan ahead and make it the night before I bake.

The left over ganache is in the frig now. I was thinking of using it when I make Rose’s pumpkin ring (I make it in a loaf pan)

Julie, I have a question not related to this..I saved the link to the 9.5 tart pan @ JBPrince.  I want to order it this week.  Is it okay to use the 9.5 for recipes that call for a 9” tart pan without recalculating the recipe? Thank you

Missy!  That is so beautiful!  It’s so funny that the ganache is not the texture you had hoped, because I admired it’s beauty immediately!  It’s so shiny and lovely!  And your slice is magnificent!!  So glad you like the cake, too!  I’ll have to try it with ganache sometime—can’t go wrong with bananas and chocolate, that’s for sure!

Thank you Anne.  My husband loves it.  The Milk Chocolate ganache definitely adds the sweetness my husband prefers.  I feel the cake should have had a thicker layer of frosting, but this is a learning experience for me.

Have you ever made this cake as a layer cake?

MJ, the 9.5” size medium deep tart pan from Gobel is the one that Rose recommends for the Gateau Breton.  It has a six cup capacity and can be filled about 2/3 full with most of Rose’s cake recipes- the cake will dome and rise up a little higher than the edge, but then shrink a bit on cooling and end up flat and full height.  It doesn’t end up being a very tall cake, as max layer height is 1.25-1.375 “.  I love it, but just wanted you to have full disclosure before taking the plunge. 

A 9.5” tart pan is also the most frequently used size for tarts in the Pie-Pastry Bible, though there are other sizes required, too.  The PPB uses the shorter 1” height x 9.5” tart pans, but so far I haven’t had any problems with the taller 1.375” pan.  The only issue I can see for pies or tarts is that if you like to have the crust extend up and over the rim of the pan you might need to increase the quanity of pastry crust to give a larger circle.  If you don’t extend up and over the rim, you have less chance of over-browning the crust, but also more shrinking down of the sides. 

If you are using another author’s recipe and it calls for a 9” tart pan, you might want to increase the recipe to accomodate the larger diameter, but if it were me I wouldn’t do anything to account for the higher sides, as a deeper layer of pie filling often runs into problems.  To increase the tart recipe from a 9” to a 9.5”, you would increase by 11.4%, or 10% would probably work just as well and be easier to calculate.  It’s possible that you could skip the adjusments and make a thinner tart, but I don’t know if that would always work. 

You might also check Amazon and/or a general web search to see who has the best price, as several vendors carry it.

Thank you Julie.  I have never made a tart or pie but I’m slowly accumulating the necessary equipment.  I have Rose’s PPB but have not made anything, other than her glazes, from it yet.  But, I am moving forward and hoping to start soon.

I guess I should choose a recipe first and then buy the appropriate pan.

Thank you SO much for your help