First, make the chocolate mousse in advance as it needs to set. Melt the dark chocolate by breaking it up and putting it into a glass bowl over a saucepan of boiling water (a Bain Marie.) Once the chocolate has melted put it to one side to cool a little (but don’t let it set again.)

From your separated eggs, whisk the egg whites to soft peaks, add the sugar and then just briefly whisk again so that the sugar is thoroughly mixed into the egg whites.

Quickly mix the egg yolks into the slightly cooled chocolate and then whisk in around a third of the egg whites to ‘slacken’ the mixture. Carefully fold in the rest of the egg whites, being sure not to over mix, then place into a bowl and into the fridge to set.

Now onto the roulade. Preheat your oven to 180C/380F/gas mark 4. Lightly grease a 33cm x 23cm Swiss-roll tin and line with non-stick baking paper, pushing it into the corners.

Melt the dark chocolate by breaking it up and putting it into a glass bowl over a saucepan of boiling water (a Bain Marie.) Once the chocolate has melted put it to one side to cool a little.

Whisk the egg yolks and caster sugar together until light & creamy and then add the cooled chocolate & stir until evenly combined.

In a separate bowl whisk the egg whites to soft peaks. Add a third of this to the chocolate, egg yolk & sugar mix and stir it in to slacken the mixture. Sift in the cocoa and then fold in the remaining egg whites carefully so as not to over mix. Spread the mixture out evenly in the Swiss-roll tin and then pop it into the oven to bake for around 20 minutes until it is firm all over.

Remove from the oven and then, leaving it in the tin, cover it with a clean tea towel until it is completely cold.

Dust a large piece of greaseproof paper with sifted icing sugar. Turn out the roulade and peel off the grease-proof paper. Spread with the whipped double cream and then the cherries (to which you can add Kirsch if you so desire) over the top. Score a mark 2.5cm in along the short edge, and then roll up tightly like a Swiss roll, using the paper to help. The roulade will probably crack, this is fine – the best ones do!

Remove the mousse from the fridge and give it a stir around just to loosen it up a bit. Use a spatula or icing knife to cover the whole roulade carefully and then return to the fridge to set for at least an hour. Enjoy!