SPECULOOS CHOCOLATE FUDGE MERINGUE CAKE as we turn 3!

Valentine's Day is usually a quiet day here because we are eagerly waiting for February 15,our Wedding Anniversary. Even though we got engaged on February 14,we still prefer keeping the excitement all inside for the Big Day! Nevertheless,I made some lacy heart pancakes and  Kalakand for him yesterday,the latter being a pending request from him for almost a year now :-)

I cannot come in terms with the fact that it's been 3 years now,since we got married. And yes, we are blessed with a little boy who is sharing the happiness this year with us. Shhh...I think he has a humongous sweet tooth...he may have taken after his Amma.

Have you ever tasted Biscoff / Speculoos? If you haven't, you are missing out on some yummy things in life. I  have been hooked onto it ever since I tasted Biscoff cookies they serve on Delta,a few years ago. It changed my life. I am hooked onto those mildly spiced cookies. So imagine a spread which tastes exactly like that? Move over, Nutella!

This cake was like a jigsaw puzzle,to me. I pulled in and matched up a lot of flavours and finally built our Meringue Cake. I love how delicate it looks. It had super light Meringue layers ( recipe from here) with  Speculoos -Cream Cheese frosting ( recipe from here )& Chocolate Fudge Sauce (recipe from my friend Kamran's food blog) in between each  layer. Finally ,it was garnished with some extra meringue bits on top which were dusted with cocoa just before serving. It was seriously YUM!

SPECULOOS CHOCOLATE FUDGE MERINGUE CAKE

Ingredients:
Chocolate Meringue Cake
6 large egg whites
1 tablespoon cream of tartar
1 1/4 c granulated sugar
3 tablespoon cocoa powder

Method:Pre-heat the oven to 200F and line a baking sheet.
Beat together egg whites and cream of tartar until foamy.Stream in the sugar beat till peak starts to form.Then add in cocoa powder and beat till stiff. Spread the meringue on the baking sheet in four 6 inch circles and bake for 3 hours. Switch off the oven and let it cool inside the oven for 1 hour.Remove and cool completely on the pan.

Speculoos- Cream Cheese Frosting
1/2 c heaped Speculoos/ Biscoff spread
1 8oz pack Cream cheese
1/2 c confectioners sugar
1 tbsp milk

Method: Beat the cream cheese on high speed until soft and fluffy. Add the spread and beat on high for another minute. Add the powdered sugar and milk and beat for 2 mins until fluffy and light.

Chocolate Fudge Sauce
100 g dark chocolate, chopped
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/3 c corn syrup
1/3 c heavy cream
1/2 tsp vanilla
a pinch of salt

Method: In a medium size bowl, melt the chocolate and cocoa powder together in a microwave for 1 minute or until the chocolate melts and becomes smooth when stirred. Remove and add the corn syrup followed by cream,vanilla and salt. Refrigerate until thick.

Assembly: Place a meringue cake on a cake platter,spread some speculoos frosting over it followed by chocolate fudge sauce. Repeat until the last meringue cake is used. Decorate the top as you wish. Chill the cake for a minimum of 8 hours,before serving.

Those little eyes had lots to watch and capture yesterday. From the loud noisy Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer making the meringue to checking the oven every now and then just to see if anything is happening (even though nothing will happen ,unlike other cakes). He just couldn't resist when I set up the cake on the platter to photograph it. He was scanning me and my movements in pin drop silence because I was handling many things that he has never seen in his past 6 months of life :-)

My tiny pea was super excited to hold the knife along with us as we cut into our cake this morning.I really don't know how he knew it but he brought his other little hand as well to hold the knife better! And of course, he stared at us as we ate our cake,with his mouth wide open. When he got his share, the slice was really big for his tiny mouth so he did have some chocolate stains all around his mouth...also on his pristine white clothes!