Sacher torte and Cru Grappa

Ingredients:
150 g unsalted butter
150 g sugar
250 g dark chocolate
1 tbsp cocoa
5 eggs
50 g ground almonds
100 g flour
8 tbsp apricot jam
5 tbsp water

Preparation:
Cream the butter with the sugar, then add 150 g of melted dark chocolate, the cocoa, the egg yolks and ground almonds. Beat the egg whites to a stiff peak and add, little by little, to the chocolate mixture. Pour into a round baking tin, greased well with butter, and bake in a preheated oven at 180°C for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool, cut into two disks and fi ll with 5 tablespoons of jam. Th in the remaining jam with 2 tablespoons of hot water and spread over the cake. Melt the remaining chocolate with 3 tbsp of hot water and use to cover the top and sides of the cake.
Serve with whipped cream and accompanied by Grappa Alexander Cru.

From the book “Spirit of Life” by Sandro Bottega & Peter Dowling