
This cake is one of the famous traditional Hungarian desserts. It was called after a popular Hungarian gipsy first-violinist, his name was Rigo Jancsi (pronounce "Reegho Yanchy" = "Johnny Blackbird"). He had a great romantic love story at turn of the 20th century.
Claire Ward (Claire Chimay) was the wife of the Belgian Prince de Caraman-Chimay and the daughter of an American millionaire. In 1896 Rigo Jancsi played violin at a restaurant in Paris. Claire had diner with her husband and she was enchanted by black eyes of Rigo Jancsi. The violinist no was very handsome boy from Hungary but he devilish played violin, had charme and he could turn women's heads. Claire loved Jancsi to distraction. She turned adrift her husband and two children and run away with Rigo Jancsi. This romance was a great scandal all over the Europe and the hot story were written by press many times. Claire and Jancsi were married and lived in differents countries. They were visited Budapest several times and dwelt in Hotel Rémy. Jancsi had a confectioner friend and asked him to create a new dessert for his wife Claire. The cake was created which was called after Rigo Jancsi and became popularly in short time.
The story no had the happy end. They lived together ten years and spended a few million dollars but after all Claire was married with an Italian receptionist. Jancsi got into evil ways, became poor man and played violin at differents honkey-tonks. He died in 1927.
Hungarian chocolate sponge (Rigojancsi)

Ingredients: for 15 services (5x5 cm = 2x2 inch cubes)
Chocolate sponge:
5 eggs
150 g all-porpouse flour
150 g granulated sugar
25 g unsweetened cocoa
2 tablespoon vegetable oil
pinch of salt
Cocoa whipped cream filling:
0,7-0,8 l whipping cream
150 g powdered sugar
30-40 g unsweetened cocoa
1 tablespoon powdered gelatin
4-5 tablespoon water
vanilia extract
Chocolate ganache:
80 g bittersweet chocolate
2 tablespoon oil
2 tablespoon consistant apricot jam
1-2 tablespoon rum (or brandy or whisky)
Preparation:
Preheat the oven to 180 C = 365 F degrees. Line a 30x25 cm = 12x10 inch jellyroll pan with parchment and spray with nonstick vegetable spray.
Measure flour and cocoa, put in the salt and mix them well in a bowl.
Put the eggs and sugar in another bowl and beat them with mixer until very creamy and white (about 7-8 minutes).
Add the dry ingredients to the creamy mixture and whisk them with a spoon carefully. At the end add and whisk the oil too.
Spread the sponge in the prepared pan...
...and bake it for 8-9 minutes until set. Let it cool.
Split the sponge fifty-fifty (15x25 cm = 6x10 inch), strip the parchment.
Either part put back the oven pan and the other part put on a tray.
Mix the jam and rum and grease the mixture on the sponge (on the tray).
Melt the chocolate and oil over barely simmering water or in the microwave oven.
Make the ganache. Pour it over the cake. Allow cake to chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes until chocolate is set.
Slice the ganache sponge 5x5 cm = 2x2 inch squares.
Steep the gelatin with water. Let it stand 5 minutes.
Mix the powdered sugar and cacao.
Beat the whipping cream.
Dip the gelatin to the whipped cream and mix them with mixer. Put the sugar-cacao mixture and vanilia in the cream and whisk them with a spoon carefully.
Spread the cream on the sponge (in the oven pan)...
...and finish it.
Put the squares on the filling one after the other.
Put the cake in the fridge. Slice cubes.