Skip to content
German Pastry Chef, home

Back to the recipe

My Moist Chocolate Raspberry Cake with a Shortcrust Base

Prep
5 min
Bake
30 min
Total
35 min
Makes
12

Ingredients

Shortcrust pastry

  • 2 ⅓ cups300 gall-purpose flourIn German recipes plain flour means soft wheat flour Type 405 unless stated otherwise. In the US use all-purpose flour; in the UK, plain flour.
  • ½ cup50 ghazelnutsground
  • 1 stick plus 6 tbsp200 gunsalted buttersoftened. German butter is unsalted and has about 82 percent fat. In the US use unsalted butter; European-style unsalted butter is closest. In the UK, unsalted butter.
  • 1 cup200 ggranulated sugar
  • 1 pinchsalt
  • 1large egg

Sponge

  • 6large eggsroom temperature (German size M is US large)
  • ¾ cup plus 2 tbsp180 ggranulated sugar
  • 1 pinchsalt
  • 3 ½ tbsp50 gunsalted buttermelted
  • ½ cup plus 2 tbsp75 gall-purpose flour
  • 5 tbsp40 gcornstarchA fine starch, usually made from corn, used to thicken creams and lighten cakes. In the US use cornstarch; in the UK, cornflour.
  • ½ cup plus 1 ½ tbsp50 gunsweetened cocoa powderPure unsweetened cocoa powder for baking. In the US use unsweetened cocoa powder (not hot cocoa mix); in the UK, cocoa powder (not drinking chocolate).
  • 1 tspbaking powderGerman baking powder is sold in 15 g packets, each meant for about 500 g (4 cups) of flour. In the US and the UK use regular baking powder (1 tbsp plus ¾ tsp per 15 g packet).

Filling

  • 3 ⅓ cups800 mlheavy creamice-cold. German cream for whipping has about 30 to 32 percent fat. In the US use heavy cream or heavy whipping cream; in the UK, whipping cream (double cream also works but whips faster, so watch it).
  • 5 packetswhipped cream stabilizerA packet of modified starch and sugar that keeps whipped cream firm; one packet is used for about 1 cup (250 ml) of cream. In the US use whipped cream stabilizer powder (sold online and in some baking aisles), or about 1 tbsp nonfat dry milk powder per cup of cream; in the UK, cream stabiliser powder (sold online), or a spoonful of mascarpone whipped in with the cream.
  • 4 to 5 tbspgranulated sugar
  • 9 oz250 graspberriesfresh or frozen

Method

  1. For the shortcrust pastry, quickly knead the ingredients into a dough, then flatten it, cover it and chill it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.

  2. Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C) on convection (fan).

  3. Knead the shortcrust pastry briefly (!) once more, divide it in half and roll it out on a floured work surface. Cut out a circle using the ring of a 10-inch (26 cm) springform pan, place it on parchment paper and prick it generously with a fork before baking.

  4. Bake for just a few minutes until the base is nicely golden, then let it cool completely on the baking sheet. Repeat to make the second base.

  5. For the sponge, beat the eggs with the salt and sugar for about 15 minutes until very thick and foamy. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°F (170°C), mix the dry ingredients together and line the bottom of the springform pan with parchment paper.

  6. Sift the dry ingredients over the egg mixture and fold them in with love and patience. Just before everything looks evenly mixed, add the melted butter and briefly fold it in as well. Pour the batter into the springform pan and bake right away for about 30 minutes. Feel free to do the toothpick test to make sure the sponge is baked through.

  7. Turn the pan upside down onto a wire rack and let the sponge cool upside down in the pan.

  8. Before you go on with the sponge and the shortcrust bases, everything must be at room temperature!

  9. Release the sponge from the pan and cut it into 3 to 4 layers. Trim the shortcrust bases a little if needed so they fit easily into the springform pan.

  10. For the filling, set aside 12 raspberries for decoration, then purée the rest. If you like, press the purée through a fine sieve to remove the seeds.

  11. Whip the heavy cream with the sugar until stiff, and just before it is really stiff, sprinkle in the whipped cream stabilizer.

  12. Add about half of the whipped cream to the raspberry purée and fold it in.

  13. Assembly: Spread about half of the raspberry cream over the first shortcrust base, smooth it out and top it with a chocolate sponge layer. Spread about half of the plain whipped cream over the chocolate layer and cover it with the second chocolate sponge layer. Spread on the remaining raspberry cream and top it with the second shortcrust base. Finally, spread a little of the plain cream on top and let the cake rest in the fridge overnight. Important! This softens the shortcrust bases a little, so the cake is easier to slice!

  14. The next day, spread the remaining cream around the cake and pipe it on top with a piping bag.

From German Pastry Chef. Full recipe with photos: germanpastrychef.com/recipes/chocolate-raspberry-cake/