Chocolate Caramel Diamonds Makes 42 Chocolate Diamonds

For Cake

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

1 stick unsalted butter

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3 eggs

¼ cup all-purpose flour

¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Preheat oven to 375°F

1. In the top of a double boiler, melt the chocolate with the butter, stirring until smooth. Remove top of double boiler and whisk in sugar. Wisk in eggs, one at a time until well combined.

2. Sift flour and cocoa over chocolate mixture and whisk until just combined. Pour batter into a baking pan and bake in middle of oven until a tester comes out clean, about 20 minutes.

3. Cool cake completely in pan on a rack and invert onto a baking sheet covered with wax paper.

For Ganache

5 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup heavy cream

1. In a dry heavy saucepan cook sugar over moderate heat, with out stirring, until it begins to melt. Continue to cook, stirring with a fork, until a deep-golden caramel.

2. Remove an from heat and add cream (mixture will bubble up and steam (be very careful handling hot caramel sauce!). Simmer mixture, stirring frequently until caramel is dissolved.

3. Remove pan from heat and add chocolate, stirring until mixture is smooth.

4. Pour ganache over top of cake and smooth with a spatula.

5. Chill cake uncovered at least 30 minutes.

For Caramel Topping (assembled before party)

¼ cup sugar

1. Lightly grease a baking sheet.

2. In a dry small heavy saucepan, cook sugar over moderately low heat, stirring slowly with a fork until a pale-golden caramel. Continue to cook without stirring. Gently swirl the pan until golden. Remove pan from heat and pour caramel onto baking sheet. Cool caramel completely.

3. Pry caramel from baking sheet and in a food processor, pulse caramel until ground.

4. Sprinkle the ground caramel evenly over the top of cake and with a sharp knife, cut cake into 1 ¼ inch diamonds

Made Oct 2006 at Julia Kraft's AAUW chocolate party