Preheat oven to 275. Put coffee, bourbon, chocolate and butter in bowl over simmering water. Let chocolate melt, stirring to keep smooth. Sift flour, soda and salt into another bowl. When chocolate is melted, scrape into bowl of mixer. At low speed add the sugar, little by little, until dissolved. Add sifted flour mixture, bit by bit, to make a batter. Beat in eggs and vanilla til smooth. Butter a bundt or tube pan and dust with cocoa powder. Pour in batter. Bake for 1 1/2 hours, or until cake just shrinks from sides of pan. Do not overbake. Cool completely on a rack before turning out. Dust with more cocoa powder. For service, whip cream, flavor with Rosewater. Serve cake slice with cream, garnish with berries and mint sprig. You can also sift a little powdered sugar over the cake. This cake keeps very well. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap, keep at room temperature for up to 3 days.

This was given to me by a culinary student of mine from Mississippi many years ago. I'm a foodservice professional and I've used this on many a fancy Nyc dessert menu-it is my favorite chocolate cake, bar none. Follow baking directions explicitly-it keeps for a week well wrapped in the fridge. Enjoy it. Lisa Chodosh