Zuccotto - cooking recipe

Ingredients

20 cm round layer sponge cakes (8-inch)
2 tablespoons brandy
2 tablespoons maraschino juice (or another)
60 g whole blanched almonds
60 g roasted hazelnuts
90 g dark chocolate
300 ml cream
1/4 cup icing sugar

Preparation

Cut cake in slices 1 cm (1/2\") thick, cut each slice on the diagonal, making two triangular sections - this is so it will fit into 5 cup round based pudding basin.
Combine brandy and Maraschino; carefully brush one side of each section of cake with this mixture.
Place sections of cake unbrushed side against sides of tin, against the inside of.
pudding bowl which as been lined with a layer of damp muslin; make sure the narrowest end of cake is on the bottom.
Repeat process until the inside of the bowl is completely lined with cake; alternate crust and non-crust sides of cake to give striped effect; fill the gaps with pieces of moistened cake; trim edges of cake so they are level with top of basin; the left over cake will cover top when filled.
Place almonds on oven tray, bake in moderate oven 5 minutes or until pale brown; remove from oven, cool.
Chop almonds and hazelnuts roughly; chop 30g (1oz) chocolate, put aside; melt remaining chocolate in top of double saucepan over hot water.
Whip together cream and sifted icing sugar until firms peaks form; fold nuts into mixture, divide mixture in half, fold chopped chocolate through one half and melted chocolate through the other.
Spoon white cream mixture evenly over the entire cake surface, leaving a cavity in the centre of the bowl; spoon chocolate mixture into cavity.
Moisten remaining cake with left over liqueur, arrange on top to cover surface completely; cover bowl and refrigerate overnight.
Turn out carefully onto serving plate; if desired, dust top with combined sifted icing sugar and cocoa about one teaspoon of each.