Chocolate Torte

"I lost the recipe I had for this cream cheese frosting/filling and found it here. I guess it's not my secret anymore! I use the filling (always a double batch) with any kind of cake, and layer it wi..." See moreth fruit, usually strawberries or raspberries. To prevent the cake from absorbing the juice and color from the berries, I spread a thin layer of the frosting on the bottom of the cake layer before I put it on top of the fruit, which already sits on a thick layer of frosting. The raves I get from this are unbelievable. My nephew who doesn't eat desserts asked for a second helping. My boss--who is stingy with compliments--took a bite, stopped, forgot himself, and raved about it. And EVERYBODY asks for the recipe. When I offered the recipe for the filling only, they didn't understand. Use the filling with ANY cake, ANY fruit, or use your imagination with chocolate, nuts, or other flavors. Once the finished cake is refrigerated, the filling sets to a wonderful texture, lighter than your average frosting but firmer. If you want to impress somebody, use this filling."

"I have made this cake twice now, and both times it was a big hit. Delicious, moist, not too sweet, and excellent presentation. Like others, I would just make a few minor modifications: (1) If you h..." See moreave the time, I recommend making the chocolate cake from scratch using the "Dark Chocolate Cake I" recipe from "Carol." You will either need to customize that recipe to make enough for two 9-inch round pans instead of the three called for, OR you can use the extra batter to make cupcakes! (2) As others have noted, you should absolutely double the other ingredients for the frosting. Otherwise there will not be enough to properly cover the top layer and sides. (3) I feel that one 1-ounce square of chocolate is not enough to make the shavings. I'd use two! Also, I've found that it helps to microwave (or otherwise warm) the chocolate before shaving, as this helps achieve the curls you want rather than just messy specks."

"Used the Dark Chocolate Cake I recipe. The icing is really good, but I like my cakes to have more depth. So I played around with using coffee in the cake recipe to make a mocha cake, added chopped h..." See moreazelnuts to the side, and topped with shaved chocolate."