Hazelnut Crunch Cake with Mascarpone & Chocolate

This cake looks really impressive but because you use a cake mix it is much easier than you think. I used a gluten free cake mix, which then made this recipe gluten free! I found this recipe in Giada‘s Kitchen – New Italian Favourites cookbook. Thanks Giada!

Cake
1 box chocolate cake mix plus additional ingredients needed to make up cake.

Crunch
1 cup hazelnuts, roasted & peeled
2/3 cup caster sugar

Filling
250g mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping
1/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips
1 tbsp caster sugar
grated rind of 1 orange

Preheat oven to 180 degrees. Grease and line 2 20 cm cake tins.
Prepare cake mix according to package instructions. Divide the batter between the cake tins and bake for 20-30 minutes or until the centre of the cakes spring back. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.
To make the crunch, place the toasted nuts close together on a lined baking tray. Combine sugar and 1/3 cup of water in a small saucepan. Over medium heat stir until sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil over medium heat until the sugar is lightly browned (about 8 minutes). Remove from heat and let the bubbles subside, then pour the caramelized sugar over the nuts. Place the baking tray in the refrigerator and let the nut crunch cool until hard, about 30 minutes. When the nut crunch has hardened and cooled, place it on a cutting board and cut into small pieces, saving a few larger ones for decoration. Set aside.
To make the filling, put mascarpone, cream, sugar and vanilla in a large mixing bowl, beat with electric beaters until soft peaks form. Fold the chopped nuts into the whipped cream.
To make the topping, place the chocolate chips, sugar and zest in a food processor. Process the mixture until the chocolate is finely ground.
To assemble the cake, put one cake layer on the serving plate or cake stand. Top with 1/3 of the whipped cream mixture. Place the second cake layer on top of the first and frost the entire cake with remaining filling. Sprinkle the top of the cake with the ground chocolate topping and add some shards of nut crunch as decoration. Serve.