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1
Cake:
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Lightly grease insides of 3 9 inch cake pans with melted butter. Line each pan with parchment paper, then lightly grease parchment paptr with more melted butter. Set aside.
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Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
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Heat 1 inch water in bottom of a double boiler over medium heat. Place 14 tablespoons butter and 8 ounces of bittersweet chocolate in top of double boiler. Tightly cover top with plastic wrap. Allow to heat for 10-12 minutes, remove from heat, stir until smooth and hold at room temperature.
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Place 8 egg yolks and 3/4 cup sugar in bowl of electric mixed with paddle. Beat on high until slightly thickened and lemon-colored, about 4 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat on high for an additional 2 minutes.
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In another bowl, whisk or beat 4 egg whites until stiff, but not dry, about 3-4 minutes.
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Fold the melted chocolate mixture into the beaten egg yolk mixture. Add a quarter of the beaten egg whites and stir to incorporate, then gently fold in remaining egg whites.
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Divide the batter among the 3 pans, spread evenly and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 22-30 minutes. Allow to cool in pans for 15 minutes. (During baking, the surface of the cakes will form a crust; this crust will normally collapse, when the cakes are removed from the oven.) Invert the cakes onto cake circles, remove the parchment and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
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Mousse Filling:
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Heat 1 inch of water in bottom of a double boiler over medium heat. Place 8 ounces of bittersweet chocolate in top of double boiler. Tightly cover with plastic wrap and allow to heat for 8-10 minutes. Remove from heat, stir until smooth. transfer melted chocolate to a stainless steel bowl and set aside until needed. Place 2 1/2 cups of heavy cream and 2 tablespoons of sugar in a well chilled bowl of electric mixer fitted with well-chilled balloon whip. Whisk on high until stiff peaks form, about 1 1/2 minutes. Remove the bowl from the mixer. Use a hand whisk to combine 1/4 of the whipped cream into the melted chocolate until smooth and completely incorporated. Add the combined whipped cream and chocolate to the remaining whipped cream and fold together.
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Ganache:
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Heat 1 1/2 cups of heavy cream and 2 tablespoons unsalted butter in a 3 quart saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil. Place the 18 ounces of bittersweet chocolate in 3 quart stainless steel bowl. Pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 5 minutes. Stir until smooth. Chill 1 cup of ganache for at least 1 hour. Remaining ganahe should be at room temperature.
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Assemble the cake:
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Arrange one of the cake layers in a 9 inch springform pan, evenly spread half of the mousse filling over the cake and top with the second layer. Add remaining mousse and top with the remaining cake layer. Chill 2 hours. Transfer chilled cup of ganache to a pastry bag fitted a star tip. Remove cake from springform pan and coat top and sides with room temperature ganache. Using chilled ganache, pipe decorative stars on top of cake.
