French Royal Chocolate Cake | Royal Au Chocolat | French Recipe

This is one of the most popular cakes in France. The dessert is also called “Versaillais” or “Trianon.”  It is usually made in a round or rectangular form. 

The cake itself is a three-layer dark chocolate mousse cake. The bottom layer is dacquoise – a meringue with added almond / hazelnut flour. It tastes like French macarons, but its texture is softer and moist. The middle layer is crunchy praline feuillantine that is made with crispy French crepes, praline paste. This layer is the most delicious one and a signature of Royal chocolate cake. The cake is topped with a creamy dark chocolate mousse that is based on whipping cream. Here I used 2 cake rings (16x4 CM). You can also use 1 cake ring(8 inches/20 cm). Ingredients Dacquoise Egg white - 125gm (4 egg white) Sugar - 35gm Powder sugar - 90gm Hazelnut powder - 75gm Cornstarch - 20gm  Crunchy Praline Feuillantine Milk chocolate - 40gm Praline paste - 70gm (Homemade recipe - https://youtu.be/kOERSaXXre8) Feuilletine flakes - 50gm  (Homemade recipe - https://youtu.be/kRNVqX13LQw) Dark chocolate mousse Egg yolk - 100gm Dark chocolate - 300gm Cold Heavy cream or Whipping cream - 300gm Sugar - 150gm Water - 50gm Method Dacquoise In a bowl, add egg whites and whisk. Gradually add granulated sugar until slightly firm. Once the meringue is ready, add icing sugar/flour mixture and gently mix with a spatula. Transfer to a piping bag. Adjust a mousse cake mold. Pipe a spiral inside the mold placed on a baking sheet with the parchment paper or simply use a spoon. Preheat oven at 180°C for about 10mins. Bake at 180°C for about 10 to 12 mins. Let it cool and keep aside. Crunchy Praline Feuillantine Heat pan on medium flame. In a pan, add milk chocolate and praline paste. Melt it. Then add the praline mix into the feuillantine flakes and mix well. Keep aside. Dark chocolate mousse In a bowl add cold whipping cream and whip until firm. Close it with cling film and refrigerate until the next process is done. Heat a pan on medium flame and add dark chocolate and melt it. Keep aside and cool at room temperature. In a bowl add the egg yolks and whisk. Meanwhile, make the sugar syrup. When the sugar becomes the boiling point, immediately add the hot sugar syrup into the egg yolk and whisk continuously until it becomes creamy. Add the melted dark chocolate and gently mix well. Gradually add the cold whipped cream and mix gently. Transfer the mousse into the piping bag. Assemble the cake. Refrigerate for at least 3 to 4 hours. For best results keep overnight. Dust with cocoa powder, sugar powder. Enjoy! Tips Do not over whisk egg whites while making the dacquoise. They have to be slightly firm to incorporate the nut flour. Spread the chocolate mousse well inside the mold, using a rubber spatula to avoid trapping air in the cake. If you are using cocoa mirror glaze - Once the cocoa mirror glaze is applied, use a bent metal spatula to remove the excess with a single pass over the top of the cake to avoid making marks. Store the decorated cake for 2 to 3 days in the fridge. Take the dessert out of the fridge about 20 minutes before tasting (the cold temperature alters the taste of chocolate).