Rose's Heavenly Cakes (37 page)
Read Rose's Heavenly Cakes Online
Authors: Rose Levy Beranbaum
12 to 14
20 to 30 minutes
I dedicate this cake to my longtime friend David Shamah, who asked me to create a golden chiffon with almonds in a traditional layer cake pan. The solution to this challenge was to add a little more flour and less liquid in the batter for increased structure. A flavorful syrup brushed on after baking makes the cake perfectly moist and tender. Wondra flour makes it lighter than air, but cake or all-purpose flour still produces a light cake. The raspberry whipped cream perfectly complements its ethereal lightness. Raspberry Mousseline buttercream (see
Miette's Tomboy
) is also an excellent choice, making for a more formal and structured presentation.
Plan Ahead
For best flavor, compose the cake 1 day ahead.
Volume | Ounce | Gram | |
blanched sliced almonds | 2/3 cup | 2.3 | 66 |
Wondra flour (see | 1¼ cups (lightly spooned into the cup and leveled off), divided | 6 | 170 |
baking powder | 1 teaspoon | . | . |
about 8 large eggs, separated, at room temperature: | ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon (4.5 fluid ounces) | 5.3 | 150 |
superfine sugar | 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons, divided | 8 | 225 |
canola or safflower oil, at room temperature | ¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon (2.5 fluid ounces) | 2.2 | 64 |
warm water | 2 tablespoons (1 fluid ounce) | 1 | 30 |
pure almond extract | ½ teaspoon | . | . |
pure vanilla extract | ½ teaspoon | . | . |
cream of tartar | ½ plus 1/8 teaspoon | . | . |
Special Equipment
Two 9 by 2-inch round cake pans, coated with baking spray with flour, then topped with parchment rounds
Preheat the Oven
Twenty minutes or more before baking, set an oven rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C.
Toast and Grind the Almonds
Spread the almonds evenly on a baking sheet and bake for about 7 minutes, or until pale golden. Stir once or twice to ensure even toasting and avoid overbrowning. Cool completely. In a food processor, process the almonds with a few tablespoons of the flour until very fine. Stop before the almonds start to become pasty. Add the remaining flour and baking powder and process for about 5 seconds until well mixed.
Mix the Yolk Mixture
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk beater, beat the yolks and half the sugar on high speed for 5 minutes, or until very thick and fluffy and, when the beater is raised, the mixture falls in ribbons. Lower the speed to medium and gradually beat in the oil and then the water, almond extract, and vanilla. Raise the speed to high and beat for 10 seconds, or until the mixture thickens again. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. If you don't have a second mixer bowl, scrape the mixture into a large bowl and thoroughly wash, rinse, and dry the mixer bowl and whisk beater to remove any trace of oil.
Dust the flour mixture over the yolk mixture without mixing it in and set it aside.
Beat the Egg Whites into a Stiff Meringue
In the bowl of the stand mixer fitted with the whisk beater, beat the egg whites on medium speed until foamy. With the mixer off, add the cream of tartar. Raise the speed to medium-high and beat until soft peaks form when the beater is raised. Gradually beat in the remaining sugar until very glossy and stiff peaks with slight curves form when the beater is raised slowly.
Make the Batter
Add one-quarter of the meringue to the yolk mixture and, with a large balloon whisk or silicone spatula, stir and fold it in until incorporated. This is a very thick batter, so if using the whisk, you'll need to shake it out between every few strokes. Gently fold in the remaining meringue in two parts, finishing by reaching to the bottom of the bowl with a silicone spatula. Scrape the batter into the prepared pans and smooth the surfaces evenly with a small offset spatula. They will be about one-third full.
Bake the Cakes
Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until a wire cake tester inserted in the centers comes out clean and the cakes start to come away from the sides of the pans. To prevent the collapse of its delicate foam structure, while still hot, the chiffon must be unmolded as soon as it is baked. Have ready a small metal spatula and three wire racks that have been coated lightly with nonstick cooking spray.
Unmold and Cool the Cakes
Run a small metal spatula between the sides of the pans and the cakes, pressing firmly against the pans, and unmold the cakes at once onto the prepared racks. Leave the parchment in place. Immediately reinvert the cakes onto the racks. Cool completely. The firm upper crust prevents falling and results in a light texture. Wrap airtight with plastic wrap until ready to complete the cake.
Note
Wondra flour results in the most airy and tender cake. You can substitute a combination of either ¾ cup plus 3 tablespoons/3.3 ounces/95 grams cake flour (or ¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon/3.3 ounces/95 grams bleached all-purpose flour), sifted into the cup and leveled off, plus ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons/2.6 ounces/75 grams cornstarch, lightly spooned into the cup and leveled off.
Highlights for Success
It is interesting to compare the almond chiffon to a golden génoise of the same size. This chiffon has a little less flour, and baking powder replaces three of the egg whites, so it has less aeration and less structure. Together with the addition of ground almonds, this results in a more velvety, dense, and tender crumb, requiring only half the liquid in the sugar syrup.
1 cup/8 fluid ounces/9.2 ounces/264 grams
Volume | Ounce | Gram | |
sugar | ¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon | 2.2 | 62 |
water | 2/3 cup (5.5 fluid ounces) | 5.6 | 158 |
amaretto di Saronno | 3 tablespoons (1.5 fluid ounces) | 1.7 | 47 |
Make the Amaretto Syrup
In a small saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, bring the sugar and water to a rolling boil, stirring constantly. Cover it immediately and remove it from the heat. Cool completely. Transfer the syrup to a measuring cup with a spout and stir in the amaretto. If the syrup has evaporated slightly, add enough water to equal 1 cup/8 fluid ounces of syrup. Cover it tightly to prevent evaporation and set aside.
Apply the Syrup
Use a long serrated knife and your fingertips to remove the top crusts. Remove the parchment and scrape off any remaining bottom crust.
Brush the syrup evenly on the tops and bottoms of the cake layers. After syruping, a chiffon layer becomes fragile and more prone to splitting when moved. Use a cardboard round or removable tart pan bottom to support the cake.
4 cups/20.7 ounces/586 grams
Volume | Ounce | Gram | |
heavy cream, cold | 1½ cups (12 fluid ounces) | 12.3 | 348 |
seedless raspberry jam | ¾ cup plus 1 tablespoon | 9 | 252 |
Make the Raspberry Jam Whipped Cream
In the bowl of a stand mixer, pour the cream and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes. (Chill the whisk beater alongside the bowl.)
Starting on low speed, gradually raising the speed to medium-high as it thickens, whip the cream just until beater marks begin to show distinctly. Add the jam and whip just until stiff peaks form when the beater is raised. Use at once.
Compose the Cake
Spread a little of the whipped cream on a 9-inch cardboard round or a serving plate and set one layer on top. If using the plate, slide a few wide strips of wax paper or parchment under the cake to keep the rim of the plate clean. Spread the top of the cake layer with about ¾ cup of the whipped cream almost to the edges; the weight of the upper layer will push the cream out a little. Set the second layer on top. Frost the top and sides with the remaining whipped cream. With a small metal spatula, make swirls and peaks in the top. Refrigerate the cake until shortly before serving. If using the paper strips, slowly slide them out from under the cake. The cake keeps for 2 hours at room temperature, for 5 days refrigerated, and for 3 months frozen.
8 to 10
30 to 40 minutes
I had given up trying to bake my favorite orange chiffon cake, which depended on the support of a tube pan, as a 9-inch round layer cake until Nushera Tazrin, a lovely and creative blogger from Australia, inspired Woody and me to return to the test kitchen. There, we discovered that using unbleached all-purpose flour and an ungreased, unlined springform pan changed everything. The unbleached flour provides just the right extra support and a properly sized springform pan allows the batter to remain comfortably in the pan and to cling to it while it cools upside down. Nushera's clever idea to use a rose nail in place of a center tube conducts the heat and also helps prevent dipping.
This cake is intensely orange, and so fluffy, moist, and tender that it seems to dissolve in your mouth. Don't worry if it dips slightly at the top; it is wondrously spongy. Serve it au naturel or with an accompanying billow of orange marmalade whipped cream on the side.
Special Equipment
One 9 by 2¾- or 3-inch springform pan, encircled with 2 cake strips overlapped to cover the entire sides | Rose nail (used for cake decorating) 2½ inches long (minimum) | Wire rack elevated about 4 inches or higher above the work surface (3 cans, coffee mugs, or glasses of equal height work well)
Make the Cake
Make the Bostini batter (see
The Bostini
), using unbleached all-purpose flour. Using a silicone spatula, scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the surface evenly with a small offset spatula. Insert the nail base side down into the center of the batter so that it sits on the bottom of the pan.
Bake the Cake
Bake for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the cake lowers slightly and a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
Cool and Unmold the Cake
Immediately invert the cake onto the prepared wire rack and allow it to cool for about 1 hour, or until the outside of the pan is cool to the touch. (If using a 2¾-inch pan, allow it to sit for a few minutes until the batter is no longer higher than the rim of the pan before inverting it onto the wire rack.)
Run a small metal spatula between the sides of the pan and the cake, pressing it against the pan. Remove the sides of the springform and release the bottom of the cake from the bottom of the pan, pressing the spatula against the bottom. Invert the cake and lift off the pan bottom. Remove the rose nail. Serve accompanied by a large dollop of orange marmalade whipped cream on the side.
