Chocolate Pine Cone Cake

Ingredients

For the dough:

4 eggs

120 g sugar

20 g cocoa powder

110 g flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 pinch cloves

Cinnamon to taste

Ground ginger to taste

Nutmeg to taste

For the frosting:

250 g mascarpone cheese

100 g chocolate

2 tbsp cognac

Chocolate drops

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and grease it with butter.

In a separate bowl, sift the dry ingredients and spices. Beat the eggs with sugar until fluffy, pour in the dry mixture, and mix with a spatula. Pour the batter onto the baking sheet, smooth it out, and tap the baking sheet against the counter to spread it evenly. Bake for 12 minutes, or until set. Transfer to a wire rack, remove the paper, and let cool.

For the frosting, melt the chocolate. Lightly beat the mascarpone (preferably at room temperature) with a mixer with warmed cognac. Add the chocolate, and mix well with a mixer on low speed.

Cut a stencil out of a piece of cardboard in the shape of a pine cone. Cut the cooled sponge cake into 3-4 identical rectangles. Place them on top of each other and on the stencil. Holding a knife at an angle, trim off any excess sponge cake to form a pine cone.

Spread the frosting over the layers, and spread the remaining frosting on top. Carefully glue the chocolate dragees on top. Refrigerate until serving.

Enjoy!