South Of The Border Jalapeno Cream Cake

4 oz Good quality semisweet choco

-late 2 tb Coffee-flavored liqueur

1/2 c Unsalted butter; softened

3/4 c Plus 1 tablespoon sugar

3 lg Eggs; separated

Room temperature 2 ts Vanilla extract

3/4 c All-purpose flour

1 ts Ground cinnamon

1/2 c Finely ground blanched

-almonds 2 md Jalapeno peppers; seeded

De-ribbed & finely minced A pinch of salt Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter 8 inch round cake pan. Place waxed paper circle to fit bottom of pan and butter waxed paper. Set aside. In top of double boiler over simmering water, melt chocolate with kahlua. Stir together until smooth. Set aside to cool. In large bowl using electric mixer set on medium speed, cream together butter, 3/4 cup sugar until thick and pale. Still beating, add yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition, until well blended. Turn speed to low and mix in chocolate mixture until well combined. Blend in vanilla. Add flour, cinnamon, almonds and jalapenos. Beat until well combined. In another bowl, beat egg whites with pinch of salt until stiff peaks form. With rubber spatula, fold 1/3 of egg whites into chocolate batter until well mixed. Fold in remaining egg whites until no streaks of white are visible. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake in center of oven 25 minutes. Cake will be quite soft and underbaked in center. Let cool in pan on wire rack to room temperature for at least 1/2 hour. Run a thin, sharp knife around edge, invert cake onto a plate and peel off waxed paper. This cake is great served plain or with a dusting of powdered sugar. THE DESSERT SHOW SHOW #DS3252
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