Chocolate Orbit Cake with Mixed Berry Sauce

WOW!! Was surprised how easy this dessert was and it was delicious. Did I mention we topped it off flaming strawberries. Super cool! Try it, you’ll LOVE it!

Chocolate Orbit Cake
(from Room for Dessert by David Lebovitz)
makes one 9" cake

Ingredients:
1/2 pound butter, in small chunks
12 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup sugar
6 eggs

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Line the bottom of a 9" round pan with parchment paper and butter the bottom and sides.
3. Combine the butter and chocolate in a double boiler.  Cook until melted.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar and the eggs.
5. Whisk in the melted chocolate to the sugar and eggs.
6. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan, and place this cake pan into a water bath, with warm water reaching about half-way up the sides.
7. Cover tightly with foil.
8. Bake in the oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the cake appears set and your finger comes away clean when you touch the center.
9. Remove from oven and water bath and let cool completely.

Mixed Berry-Cassis Sauce
Ingredients:

1 bag of frozen mixed berries

1/3 cup creme de cassis
1/4 cup sugar
juice of 1/2 lemon
zest of 1 lemon
1 tspn cornstarch
pinch of salt

fresh fruit for garnish

Directions:
1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, cook for 10 to 15 minutes stirring often, until no longer frozen and very juicy.
2. Add in the creme de cassis, sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice and bring to a simmer.
3. When the liquid begins to simmer, spoon about 1/4 cup of the liquid into a small bowl.  Add the cornstarch to the liquid in the bowl and whisk thoroughly until the cornstarch is dissolved.  Return the cornstarch mixture to the berries cooking in the saucepan.
4. Bring the mixture to a boil and allow to boil for about a minute.
5. Reduce heat to a simmer until the liquid begins to be syrupy.  Remove from heat--serve warm immediately or reheat in microwave before serving.

Cut cake and serve sauce and fresh berries on top.

Tips from a Kitchen of Reality:

- We ended up using a bag of chocolate chips—72% cacao from Whole Foods for our chocolate.

- You get Crème de Cassis at the liquor store. (Can be used to make a delicious dessert cocktail too, google it!)

- The recipe called for all blackberries but we used mixed fruit and garnished with fresh strawberries. Including a hollowed out strawberry filled with Bacardi 100 alcohol on top that we lit on fire. SO COOL!!

** Original recipe from http://www.dessertsforbreakfast.com***