Chocolate Cake with Snowy Meringue

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 4 large egg whites
• 1 pound best-quality semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 3 cups heavy cream
• 2 cups blanched almonds, toasted, coarsely chopped
• 1 ½ pounds best-quality semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 3 cups heavy cream
• + 9 more ingredients
• • 6 large eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • ½ cup low-fat buttermilk
  • 1 ½ cups sugar
  • ¾ teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 8 ounces best-quality bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
  • 1 ¼ cups (2 ½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for pans

1. Make the cake layers: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter two 9-inch round cake pans. Line bottoms with parchment paper; butter parchment. Dust with flour, and tap out excess; set aside. Melt chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, stirring. Let cool completely. Whisk ...

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