Preparation / Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees (180 C). Grease and flour two 9" round cake pans. Tap out excess flour; line bottoms with waxed paper.
In a large mixing bowl, beat butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add sugar and continue beating until smooth.
Beat in eggs, one at a time, until well blended.
Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt; add to egg mixture in thirds, alternately with milk, mixing each time just until blended.
Stir in vanilla and liqueur. Divide batter evenly between pans; bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until springy. Let cool for 30 minutes on wire rack.
Loosen edges and unmold; peel off paper. Let cool completely on rack. If making a day in advance, wrap cake layers well after cooling.
To make fudge filling, Combine sugar, cream chocolate and corn syrup in a small, heavy saucepan. Bring to a simmer over moderate heat, stirring frequently. Reduce heat to low and cook for about 10 minutes until mixture thickens. Remove from heat, dot top with butter and let cool to room temperature (about 15 minutes). Stir in butter until smooth and creamy. Set aside.
For chocolate cream, combine cream and cocoa; chill together in refrigerator for at least 1 hour. Beat until it holds soft peaks; gradually add sugar, beating until stiff.
To make chocolate syrup, combine all syrup ingredients in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over low heat; cook, stirring constantly for about 2 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl; let cool to room temperature, stirring once or twice to prevent a skin from forming. (This can be made a day in advance.) About 3 hours before serving, place one cake layer on a beautiful plate; cover with all of the fudge filling. Spread approximately 1 cup of the chocolate cream over the fudge filling. Cover with the second cake layer. Frost top and sides with remaining chocolate cream. Refrigerate.
Just before serving, drizzle the syrup over the top in a lacy pattern. You man not need all of the syrup.
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