Chocolate Triumph of Gluttony Cake
By Vnut-Beyond Redempt

Recipe Courtesy of Nick Malgeri, Director Baking Program,  Peter Kumps Cooking School  PAN DI SPAGNA

Category: Dessert
Keywords: Weeknight, Oven, < 4 Hours
Prep time: 2H10M | Cook time: 53M | Total time: 3H3M
Yield: 1 cake

Ingredients: eggs, vanilla extract, sugar, unbleached all-purpose flour, cornstarch, salt, unsalted butter, maraschino cherries, unsalted shelled pistachios, sugar, water, maraschino cherry juice

Instructions:
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the yolks with the vanilla extract.  Whisk in half the sugar and continue to beat until very light and  frothy, about 5 minutes.
Combine the flour and cornstarch and sift  once to aerate. In a clean, dry bowl, beat the egg whites with the  salt until they hold a very soft peak.
Beating faster, add the  remaining sugar in a very slow stream, beating until the egg whites  hold a firm peak.
Fold the yolks into the whites.
Sift the flour and  cornstarch over the eggs in 3 additions, folding them in gradually.
Do not over-mix the batter.
Pour the batter into a buttered and  paper-lined 9- or 10-inch round pan, 2-inches deep and smooth the  top.
Bake the Pan di Spagna at 350 degrees, 30 to 40 minutes,  until it is well risen and feels firm when pressed gently with the  palm of the hand.
Immediately loosen the layer from the side of the  pan with a small knife or spatula.
Invert the layer and leave the  paper stuck to it. Turn the layer right side up and cool it on a rack.
Double-wrap the layer in plastic and keep it in the refrigerator up to  5 days or freeze it. Variations: Flavor the batter with a grated  orange or lemon zest or a tablespoon of Anisette.
For the chocolate filling, bring the cream to a boil and remove the  heat.
Add finely cut chocolate, stir once and let stand for 3  minutes.
Whisk smooth, pour into a bowl and cool until set, several  hours at a cool room temperature.
Set aside.
For the syrup, bring  sugar and water to a boil in a small pan.
Cool and stir in  Maraschino.
For the pistachios, place in a pan and cover with  water.
Bring to a boil, drain and rub in a towel to loosen skins.
Go over pistachios to separate from skins.
Place pistachios on a jelly  roll pan and dry out at 325 degrees about 5 minutes.
Cool and  chop coarsely.
To prepare the layers, cut the Pan di Spagna into 5  thin horizontal slices.
Reserve 2 of the slices, then cut the other  slices into smaller disks, each 1-inch smaller in diameter then the  reserved 2, to make a 9, 8-, and 7-inch disk.
Reserve scraps.
To  finish the filling, beat the butter by machine until soft and light, then  beat in the cooled chocolate mixture all at once. Beat again until  light, then beat in the Maraschino.
Stir in half of the chopped  pistachios.
To assemble, place one of the 10-inch layers on a  platter or cardboard and moisten with the syrup.
Spread the filling.
Continue with the remaining layers.
After spreading the 7-inch layer  with the filling, form a 6-inch layer with the scraps on top of it.
Moisten the 6-inch layer and spread the entire outside of the cake  with the filling.
Cut a slash from the center to the edge of the  reserved 10-inch layer and cover the entire outside of the cake with  it.
Moisten with the remaining syrup and spread with the remaining  filling.
Press the reserved pistachios all over the outside of the  cake.
Dust lightly with the confectioners' sugar.

Nutrition per serving: 466.1 calories, 31.2 g fat (13.2 g saturated), 109 mg cholesterol, 52.1 mg sodium, 44.2 g carbohydrate (5.5 g fiber, 23.9 g sugar), 10.7 g protein.