Like a few of the other desserts I’ve included in the book, this takes me right back to my greedy childhood. Mum would cook this the day before she was having a dinner party, and it would sit there in its fancy crystal glass bowl in the fridge, tempting us.
Ingredients
- 17 fl oz 2 cups (500 ml) double (thick) cream
- 1 tablespoon icing (confectioners’) sugar
- 12 oz (350 g) amaretti biscuits
- 3 fl oz (90 ml) brandy
Chocolate Sauce
- 10½ oz (300 g) good-quality dark chocolate
- 16 fl oz (455 ml) double (thick) cream
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
How to Make It
- For the chocolate sauce, break the dark chocolate into chunks, then melt in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water (make sure the base of the bowl isn’t touching the water).
- In a separate pan, heat the cream until it is warm to the touch (don’t let it boil). Pour the cream into the bowl of melted chocolate, then add the cocoa powder and a sprinkle of salt and whisk until it all comes together to make a thick, rich sauce. Set aside to cool for 10–20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, whisk the cream with the icing sugar until it forms soft peaks.
- To assemble the dessert, take a large serving bowl or cake tin and place a layer of amaretti biscuits in the base, leaving no gaps. Drizzle over about 1½ tablespoons of the brandy – this will make the biscuits gooey and delicious. Next spoon over the cooled chocolate sauce, followed by a layer of the whipped cream. Repeat these layers until all the ingredients have been used up. Refrigerate for a couple of hours, so it’s thoroughly chilled and set.
- Be generous when serving although this is super-rich, I’d be devastated if I got a mean portion!
