Double Chocolate Mousse Cake

My buddy Nicole is moving back out West! So when we covertly planned her farewell at work, I decided to do a Red Velvet Cake with a Milk Chocolate Mousse and Dark Chocolate Mousse for my fellow chocolate lover. Unconventional, but she said it was "lethally good!" And check out this T-shirt we got her to remember us by.

I halved the recipe for Red Velvet Cupcakes and baked the batter as a single layer in an 8-inch springform pan at 350 degrees for 25 minutes (test for doneness by inserting a skewer or knife). Then I sawed it in half and put it aside for layering.

I used the mousses from a Francois Payard recipe on Epicurious:

3 1/2 cups (812 grams) heavy cream
5 ounces (142 grams) milk chocolate, finely chopped
5 ounces (142 grams) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

In the bowl of an electric mixer, using the whisk attachment, beat 2 1/2 cups (580 grams) of the heavy cream to soft peaks. Scrape half of the whipped cream into a medium bowl. Cover both bowls and refrigerate.

Put the milk and dark chocolate in two separate medium bowls. Bring the remaining 1 cup (232 grams) cream to a boil in a small saucepan. Pour 1/2 cup (116 grams) of the hot cream over the milk chocolate and the remaining 1/2 cup (116 grams) over the bittersweet chocolate. Gently whisk the milk chocolate until it is completely melted and the mixture is smooth. Whisk the dark chocolate until smooth.

Let the chocolate mixtures cool for 10 minutes. Fold the milk chocolate mixture into one bowl of whipped cream. Fold the dark chocolate into the remaining whipped cream.

For assembly, I put a cardboard round in the bottom of the springform pan, followed by the bottom half of the cake, cut side up. Spread the dark chocolate mousse in as even a layer as possible, then top it with the other half of the cake, cut side down. Spread the milk chocolate mousse on top of that. Cover tightly with plastic wrap to prevent refrigerator odors from sinking in, and chill for two to four hours.

When ready to serve, carefully remove the springform ring and take out the cake. Sift cocoa powder all over the top. Cut desired designs into a piece of parchment paper, then place paper on top of cake. Sift confectioners sugar over the paper so it falls only over the cutouts.