Chocolate and raspberry pound cake

To make chocolate and raspberry pound cake, start with the ganache: place the cream and the sugar in a saucepan 1, add the honey 2 and simmer on a medium flame while stirring with a whisk 3

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Place the coarsely chopped dark chocolate in a bowl, add the boiling cream in 3 goes 4 and stir with a spatula until the chocolate melts entirely and the mixture becomes smooth and homogeneous 5. Place the ganache cream in a baking tray, snuggly cover with plastic wrap 6 and leave it to crystallize at room temperature for 4 hours.

Now prepare the raspberry heart dough: place the soft room temperature butter in a planetary mixer with a leaf spatula, add the sugar 7, the condensed milk 8 and the raspberry jam 9. If you want you can add a pinch of coloring for an enhanced effect. Switch the planetary mixer on at a medium speed and heat the milk in a saucepan in the meantime.

While the planetary mixer is working, gradually add the lukewarm milk 10, the eggs 11 and the yolks 12. Continue stirring all the while until the liquids are fully absorbed.

In the meantime, sieve the powders and place them in a bowl, one at a time: the flour 13, the potato starch 14 and the yeast for sweets 15.

Stir the powders together with a whisk 16 and add them to the mixture in 2 goes 17, stirring vigorously with a spatula until homogeneous 18.

Line a 14.8"x9.8" tray with parchment paper, make sure it adheres well by using a little butter; add the batter 19 and spread it out evenly with a spatula 20. Bake in a preheated static oven to 330°F (165°C) for around 15-20 minutes. Once baked, remove from the oven and leave to cool 21.

In the meantime, prepare the chocolate mixture: start by melting the butter and the chocolate; leave to cool until warm. Place the sugar in a bowl 22, add the melted butter 23 and chocolate 24, then thoroughly stir with a spatula.

Once the mixture is homogeneous 25, add the previously beaten eggs 26 and stir, then add the almond flour in 2 goes 27.

Sieve the cocoa 28 and the yeast 29 in a bowl. Delicately stir the powders together with a spatula 30. Leave the batter to rest for at least 30 minutes at room temperature (up to 2 hours), so that it does not rise too much during baking.

Once the raspberry sponge cake has cooled, turn it over and delicately remove the parchment paper 31, then cut into hearts using a 2.4"-2.8" mold 32. Use the mold to cut the heart shapes out in alternating directions so as to reduce the amount of leftover dough, then place them on a tray 33.

Now you're ready to assemble the sponge cake: take a paper mold that is roughly 8.1 inches long at the base and 9.1 on the surface (3.7 inches wide and 2.8 inches tall) and place the chocolate batter in a pastry bag without a nozzle. Cover the bottom of the mold with the chocolate batter 34, then place the raspberry heart in the middle part,leaving roughly enough room for a finger around the entire edge 35. Skewer the mold and the hearts with a wooden skewer on both sides so that they do not rise during baking 36.

Cover with the remaining chocolate batter, by filling the edges first 37 and then the surface 38. Bake the sponge cake in a preheated static oven at 347°F (175°C) for 35-40 minutes. Once baked, remove from the oven and remove the skewers, then leave to cool 39.

Lastly, soften the ganache with a spatula 40 and spread a thick layer on the sponge cake 41 42.

Smooth the ganache using an acetate sheet 43 and decorate with a red sugar paste heart 44. Leave the ganache to crystallize for at least 4 hours, after which time your chocolate and raspberry pound cake will be ready to be served 45!