Serves 8

INGREDIENTS

Custard
• • ½ cup sugar
• • 3 tbsp cornstarch
• • ½ tsp salt
• • 1 large egg plus 3 egg yolks
• • 2 cups whole milk
• • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Cake
• • ¼ cup (½ stick) salted butter
• • ²⁄³ cup sugar
• • 1 large egg
• • 1½ cups cake flour
• • 1½ tsp baking powder
• • ¼ tsp salt
• • ¾ cup whole milk
• • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Topping
• • 1 cup heavy cream
• • 1½ cups semisweet chocolate chips

INSTRUCTIONS

1. To make the custard, in a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch and salt. Stir in the whole egg and the 3 yolks, and then stir in the milk. Set the pot on medium-high, heat and cook, uncovered, stirring constantly, until the custard thickens, 12 to 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Transfer to a bowl, place plastic wrap directly onto the custard, then refrigerate.
2. To make the cake, preheat the oven to 350° F. Spray a 9-inch round cake pan with cooking spray and set aside.
3. Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the egg and mix completely. Sift together the cake flour, baking powder and salt. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, alternating with the milk and beginning and ending with the flour. Add the vanilla.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven and cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool completely, about 20 minutes.
5. To make the chocolate ganache, in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat bring the cream to a boil, then immediately remove from the heat. Stir the chocolate chips into the cream until completely melted.
6. Slice the cake in half horizontally. Spread custard filling onto one layer, then top with the second layer. Spread the ganache over the cake. Chill at least 2 hours before serving.

In his foreword – affectionately signed “Mr. Yearwood” – to his wife’s new cookbook, Garth Brooks says he had always struggled with high cholesterol and high blood pressure. “But on my last checkup, my doctor came in, put the results down on the desk and jokingly said, ‘These results cannot be yours,’” recalls Garth, 53. He gives full credit for his newly healthy numbers to Trisha, 50, his Grammywinning wife of 10 years. It turns out she’s as adept at creating hits in the kitchen as she is in the recording studio. Her Food Network show, Trisha’s Southern Kitchen, is in its sixth season and Trisha’s Table reveals how she’s made dishes they already love lighter – a key reason Garth says he’s the healthiest he’s ever been. The couple still allow themselves the occasional indulgence, says Trisha, who’s joined Garth on his world tour, launched now that his three daughters are grown and off to college. “I have adopted an 80/20 rule when it comes to my delicate relationship with food; 80 per cent of the time I make good choices; 20 per cent of the time I let myself splurge,” Trisha says. – CHRIS DANIELS