Arc-En-Ciel is just French for rainbow. This cake, it literally is a chocolate rainbow, split by different shades of chocolate brown. I wanted to make this cake because I love ripping off of Lady M’s menu, since their cakes, while gorgeous and delicious, are too damn expensive. I am NOT going to pay $65-90 for a cake. Especially when I can just bake it for ingredients costing to, at most, $10-15.

For the layers, we have chocolate chiffon cake, a dark chocolate Bavarian cream, goat milk-chocolate-mascarpone mousse, chocolate-sea salt ganache, and a dusting of cocoa powder on top. The key to make this cake is making sure that your cake is already cooled and your mousses are just freshly folded, but not set, so that you can just shove everything into a lined 6 inch ring mold and call it a day.

For the chiffon cake:
2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
a pinch of salt
3 tablespoons canola oil
2 egg yolks
4 egg whites
3/4 teaspoons baking powder

Whip egg whites with half the sugar and the baking powder and egg yolks with the rest, plus salt, oil, and cocoa powder. Sift flour. Combine ingredients and spread onto a lined shallow baking tray. Bake at 350 degrees F for 20 minutes. Cool completely before punching out 1 6-inch ring and 1 5-inch ring.

For the dark chocolate Bavarian:
2 egg yolks
2/3 cups heavy cream
1/3 cup dark chocolate
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup goat milk
1 teaspoon gelatin powder + 1 tablespoon water
a pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Melt gelatin into milk. Melt chocolate over a double boiler. Whisk into the egg yolks and cocoa powder on medium-low heat for 1-2 minutes, then strain mixture straight into the melted chocolate. Mix until smooth and bring down to just above room temperature. Whip heavy cream with salt and vanilla. Fold everything together. Keep at room temperature for assembly.

For the goat milk mousse:
1/2 cup goat milk
2 teaspoons gelatin powder + 1 tablespoon water
4 oz mascarpone cheese
1/4 cup dark chocolate chips (or semisweet)
a pinch of salt
1/4 cup granulated sugar

Melt sugar and bloomed gelatin into goat milk. Whip in the chocolate and cream the mascarpone cheese. Fold mixtures together. Keep at room temperature for assembly.

For assembly:
Chiffon cake rings
Chocolate bavarian
Mascarpone mousse
6-inch ring mold
acetate or parchment(I highly recommend acetate)
oil

Line a 6-inch ring mold with oil, then acetate or parchment. Place the 6 inch ring of cake down first. Pour in the dark chocolate mousse. Press, halfway in, the 5 inch ring of cake, then pour on the goat milk mousse. Tap the bottom of the cake to even out the layers, ignoring anything that spills out from the bottom. Freeze solid.

For the ganache:
1/4 cup dark chocolate chips
2 tablespoons goat milk
1 tablespoon canola oil
a pinch of salt

Melt ingredients together. Once the mixture is at room temp, but still a liquid, pour over the top of the frozen cake, and tap until smooth on top. Freeze for 20-30 minutes to solidify the top layer. Dust with cocoa powder then unmold to finish.