The incredible lightness of darkness

Five of Sassafrass came to my Boxing Day tea.  It was fabulous.  The conversation was brilliant and hilarious; the tea was Golden Tippy Assam; and (for once in a blue moon) I baked the chocolate cake, the perfect paradox of dark and light.  It's a Bundt cake, not terribly sweet.  The crumb is excellent—as moist and airy as an April breeze yet densely complex.  It has a slight, ultradark crust, just a bit of crackle like a crème brûlée, but unsweet.  And it is rich—amazingly so for a cake so lightly risen.  Believe me, this cake does not need icing, though it's very nice indeed with crème fraîche.  In honor of the great occasion—a roomful of Æsir!—I used artisanal Madagascar chocolate:  Pralus Le 100% Criollo.  Spectacular.

Nine