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Whisky and chestnut torte

Eric Lanlard from Great Food Live
Raise spirits with Eric Lanlard's seductive chocolate torte, studded with chestnuts and flavoured with whsiky

Whisky and chestnut torte

Method

1. For the ganache; place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Pour the cream into a saucepan and bring to scalding point before adding to the chocolate. Stir until the mixture is smooth and add the whisky. Leave on one side to cool.

2. To make the syrup; bring the water to a boil and add the sugar. Stir until dissolved and leave on one side to cool. Stir in the whisky.

3. Place one of the sponge discs at the bottom of a 20cm round 'springform' cake tin and sprinkle with the whisky syrup.

4. Transfer the ganache to a piping bag and pipe a third of the ganache on top. Scatter over the soaked marron glace. Pipe another third of the ganache over the marron glace.

5. Set the second sponge cake disc over the ganache and sprinkle with the remaining syrup. Pipe the remaining ganache over the top and smooth evenly with a palette knife.

7. Chill the cake in the refrigerator for 4 hours and remove from the tin.

8. To make the decoration; put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set over a saucepan of gently simmering water. Stir until the chocolate has melted.

9. Brush the melted chocolate over a flat strip of flexible cellophane, then immediately wrap it around the cake - chocolate side facing inwards. Leave to cool, before peeling the cellophane off.

10. Using melted white chocolate, pipe a message across the top of the cake. Decorate with heather and serve in wedges.