Y. mag bekanntermassen kein Käse. Ab und zu schmuggle ich trotzdem etwas Käse in sein Essen. Nur wenig, damit er ihn nicht riechen kann. Noch nie hat er den Käse bemerkt. Ich glaube ihn stört nicht der Käsegeschmack sondern der Geruch.

Durch seine angebliche Käseabneigung mag er italienisches Essen nicht so gerne. Zuerst konnte ich das nicht verstehen bis ich mal sein käseloses Risotto probiert habe. Was soll ich sagen? Dem Risotto fehlt das gewisse Etwas des Käses. Seit diesem Moment mach ich das mit dem Käseschmuggel. ;-)

Auch in folgendes Rezept, ich nenn es Pizzone da es weder eine Pizza noch eine Calzone ist, habe ich etwas Parmesan reingeschmuggelt. Vielleicht war es etwas zu viel, denn Y. meinte Flammenkuchen schmecke ihm besser. Ich fand's gut. Das nächste Mal werde ich jedoch etwas mehr vom Frischkäse nehmen.

Pizzone

300 g Pizzateig

Füllung
100 g Frischkäse (Philadelphia)
1 EL Parmesan
Pfeffer, Salz
frischer Schnittlauch, nach Belieben
1 kleine Zucchetti in Scheiben geschnitten und gegrillt (hatte ich vom Vortag übrig)
100-150 g Kochschinken, in dünnen Scheiben

Teig halbieren und in zwei dünne Platten auswallen.

Für die Füllung Frischkäse würzen und glatt rühren. Schnittlauchröllchen und Parmesan dazugeben, gut mischen. Diese Masse auf der Bodenteigplatte gleichmässig verstreichen. Zucchettischeiben und Schinken ebenfalls gleichmässig darauf verteilen, dabei einen Rand von 1cm freilassen. Die andere Teigplatte darauf legen. Rand zusammenfalten bzw. rollen. Mit einem Messer den Teigdeckel schräg alle 2 cm einschneiden. Wenn kein Schnittlauch verwendet wird evtl. mit Oregano bestreuen. Im vorgeheizten Ofen bei 220 C 20 Minuten backen*. Warm essen. Die Pizzone schmeckt sicher auch kalt, was wir jedoch nicht testen konnten, weil wir sie sofort aufgegessen haben.

Do you know the leaning Tower of Pisa? Finally the small village I live has a similar attraction: My leaning Opéra. Fortunately it took me not 177 years to build. It costed me just some hours and nerve.

Of course you already know why I did this construction: The Daring Bakers challenge - this month hosted by the founders Ivonne and Lis and two newer members Fran and Shea - asked for an Opéra Cake. Another scary recipe with buttercream and tons of calories! I hope next month we will get a more bikini-friendly recipe. ;-)

Once I've finished the building work, and cut the edges of the cake, it looked not so bad anymore.

I did just 1/3 of the joconde, so I've got a very thin biscuit. The batter seemed too liquid to me, I added 20 g flour. Accidentally I used salted pistachios, but I did notice this only before baking. It didn't matter, the final joconde tasted good also with salted pistachios. Lucky me!

Then I started with the buttercream, of course I did 1/3 of the recipe, too. Instead of a 1/3 egg I just used the remaining egg yolk of the joconde. I added bitter orange zest and Cointreau to flavor the buttercream. It came out just perfect, but not enough quantity for the joconde.

I cut the joconde again, but still it' wasn't enough buttercream. I did an additional batch of buttercream, and instead of 3 layers I did 4.

On one layer I spread some homemade Bitter Orange Marmalade, too.

Can you still follow me?

I skipped the syrup and soaked the cake directly with Cointreau: We are grown-ups en la casa de zorra!

The white chocolate ganache/mousse was optional.

This is the glaze.

But for this challenge I did the full program.

Et voilà, L'Opéra de zorra:

L'Opéra Cake
makes 1 small cake

Joconde

2 egg whites, at room temperature (M)
10 g granulated sugar
75 g ground salted pistachios
60 gramm Icing sugar, sifted
2 eggs (M)
50 gramm All-purpose flour (+ 1 tb)
1 tb unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Syrup
30 g Cointreau

Buttercream
100 g inverted sugar (homemade)
2 egg yolk
140 gramm Unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tb Cointreau

White chocolate ganache/mousse
100 g white chocolate
70 g whipped cream + 1 tb cream
1 ts Cointreau

Glace
50 g white chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 tb crème fraîche
1 ts walnut oil

Joconde:

1. Divide the oven into thirds by positioning a rack in the upper third of the oven and the lower third of the oven.

2. Preheat the oven to 425 F. (220C).

3. Line one 12½ x 15½- inch (31 x 39-cm) pan with parchment paper and brush with melted butter.

4. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or using a handheld mixer), beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Add the granulated sugar and beat until the peaks are stiff and glossy. If you do not have another mixer bowl, gently scrape the eringue into another bowl and set aside.

5. If you only have one bowl, wash it after removing the egg whites or if you have a second bowl, use that one. Attach the paddle attachment to the stand mixer (or using a handheld mixer again) and beat the almonds, icing sugar and eggs on medium speed until light and voluminous, about 3 minutes.

6. Add the flour and beat on low speed until the flour is just combined (be very careful not to overmix here!!!).

7. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the meringue into the pistachios mixture and then fold in the melted butter. Divide the batter between the pans and spread it evenly.

8. Bake the cake layer until it is lightly browned and just springy to the touch. This could take anywhere from 5 to 9 minutes depending on your oven.

9. Put the pan on a heatproof counter and run a sharp knife along the edge of the cake to loosen it from the pan. Cover with a sheet of parchment or wax paper, turn the pan over, and unmold.

10. Carefully peel away the parchment, then turn the parchment over and use it to cover the cake. Let the cake cool to room temperature


Buttercream:

1. Whisk the egg yolks and inverted sugar at high speed in the bowl of your mixer using the whisk attachment. Whisk them until they are pale and foamy.

2. While the egg mixture is beating, place the softened butter in a bowl and mash it with a spatula until you have a soft creamy mass.

3. With the mixer on medium speed, begin adding in two-tablespoon chunks. When all the butter has been incorporated, raise the mixer speed to high and beat until the buttercream is thick and shiny.

4. At this point add in your flavouring and beat for an additional minute or so.

5. Refrigerate the buttercream, stirring it often, until it's set enough (firm enough) to spread when topped with a layer of cake (about 20 minutes).

Mousse-Ganache:

1. Melt the white chocolate and 1 tb of cream in a small saucepan.

2. Stir to ensure that it's smooth and that the chocolate is melted. Add the tablespoon of liqueur to the chocolate and stir. Set aside to cool completely.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, whip the remaining 1 cup of heavy cream until soft peaks form.

4.Gently fold the whipped cream into the cooled chocolate to form a mousse.

5.If it's too thin, refrigerate it for a bit until it's spreadable.

6.If you're not going to use it right away, refrigerate until you're ready to use.

Glaze:

1. Melt the white chocolate with the crème fraaîche and walnut oil. Whisk the mixture gently until smooth.

2.Let cool for 10 minutes and then pour over the chilled cake. Using a long metal cake spatula, smooth out into an even layer.

3. Place the cake into the refrigerator for 30 minutes to set.

Assembling the Opéra Cake:

(Note: The finished cake should be served slightly chilled. It can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 1 day).

Line a baking sheet with parchment or wax paper.

Cut and trim the cake so that you have 5 pieces

Place one square of cake on the baking sheet and moisten it gently with the Cointreau.

Spread about three-quarters of the buttercream over this layer.

Top with the two rectangular pieces of cake, placing them side by side to form a square. Moisten these pieces with the flavoured syrup.

Spread the remaining buttercream on the cake and then top with the third square of joconde. Use the remaining syrup to wet the joconde and then refrigerate until very firm (at least half an hour).

Prepare the ganache/mousse (if you haven't already) and then spread it on the top of the last layer of the joconde. Refrigerate for at least two to three hours to give the ganache/mousse the opportunity to firm up.

Make the glaze and after it has cooled, pour/spread it over the top of the chilled cake. Refrigerate the cake again to set the glaze.

If necessary cut and trim the edges of the cake.

Serve the cake slightly chilled. This recipe will yield approximately 20 6 servings.


This piece of cake is for you!

Don't forget to vist Daring Bakers Blogroll.

More entries and recipes in English.

daring bakers

November 2007 Challenge - Tender Potatoe Bread
December 2007 Challenge - Yule Log
January 2008 Challenge - Lemon Meringue Pie
February 2008 Challenge - French Bread
March 2008 Challenge - Perfect Party Cake

Lovely Helen from Tartlette is the hostess of Sugar High Friday #43, an event created by Jennifer of The Domestic Godess.

Beside chocolate citrus are Helen's favorite flavors, it's obvious she has chosen citrus as theme. I love citrus too, and I'm in the fortunate position to own some citrus trees. This is the first year my orange tree produces fruits. The oranges supposed to be blood oranges (Sanguinelli), but it turned out that the tree yields bitter oranges. Recently I made with these oranges Bitter Orange Marmalade, and with this marmalade I prepared the following cake. Unfortunately it is not as spongy as it should be, but its taste is still delicious. Due to the dark chocolate and bitter oranges not too sweet. We love it.

Bitter Choc-Orange-Cake

120 g sugar
1 tb vanilla sugar
3 egg yolks
150 g butter, melted
juice of 1 small bitter orange
zest of 1 bitter orange
3 egg whites
1 pinch of salt
1 1/2 tb sugar
200 g flour
25 g Maizena
1 ts baking powder
1 1/2 tb bitter orange marmalade
1 tb Cointreau
75 g dark chocolate, melted (I used 75 %)

Prepare a 20 cm pan. Preheat oven to 180 C.

In another bowl add the egg whites and salt, beat until foamy. Add half of the sugar and continue to beat until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in the remaining sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.

Sift together the flour, Maizena and baking powder.

In a large bowl beat the sugar, vanilla sugar and egg yolks until pale. Add melted butter, Orange juice and zest beat until combined. With a rubber spatula gently fold the egg whites and flour mixtures into the batter.

Turn half of the batter into another bowl. Add the bitter orange marmalade and Cointreau to one bowl and the melted chocolate to the other. Alternately spoon the bitter orange and chocolate batters into a pan. Bake for 35 - 40 minutes. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool completely. Before serving dust with icing sugar.

sugar high friday, shf

More recipes and entries in English.

Zum 1. Mai und natürlich vor allem zum 3-Jahres-Blog-Event-Jubliläum wollte ich etwas Spezielles machen. Ich habe lange überlegt und mich gefragt, was zum Mai gehört? Beim Durchblättern von alten BB-Zeitungen kam die Erleuchtung: Natürlich Maikäfer!

In der Zeitung von 1996 gibt's auch noch den Kuchen dazu, der hat mir aber nicht so gepasst, deshalb habe ich gegoogelt und bin beim Chefkoch gelandet. Denn es musste ein Rezept sein, bei dem ich das restliche Marzipan aufbrauchen konnte. Ich habe das Originalrezept etwas abgeändert, weniger Zucker und mehr Marzipan genommen, und einen anderen Guss gemacht. Leider habe ich den Kuchen etwas zu lange gebacken, deshalb habe ich ihn grosszügig mit Amaretto getränkt.

Wie er schmeckt? Das kann ich euch morgen sagen! ;-)

***

Maikäfer
ergibt 8 Stück

100 g Marzipan-Rohmasse
50 g schwarze Schokolade
1 Spritzer Walnussöl
8 ungeschälte Mandeln
16 Zuckerperlen

Marizpan in 8 gleich grosse Stücke teilen und zu Käfer formen. Mandeln halbieren. Schokolade in warmem Wasserbad schmelzen. Walnussölspritzer dazugeben. Marzipankäfer mit Hilfe eines Zahnstochers in die geschmolzene Schoggi tauchen. Gut abtropfen lassen. Mit einem anderem Zahnstocher dabei die Schoggi an der Unterseite etwas abstreifen. Käfer auf ein Backpapier legen. Zahnstocher mit Hilfe des zweiten Zahnstochers entfernen und das entstandene Loch mit etwas Schoggi auffüllen.

Für die Flügel je 2 Mandelhälften in die noch feuchte Schoggi stecken. Für die Augen Zuckerperlen in die Glasur drücken. Trocknen lassen.

***

Marizpan-Schoggi-Kuchen
Rezept für eine 20er-Form

100 g Marzipan-Rohmasse
130 g Butter
100 g Zucker
1/2 Päcklein Vanillezucker
2 Eier (M)
1/2 Fläschchen Bittermandelaroma
250 g Mehl
TL Backpulver
50 g Milch, (evtl. mehr oder weniger)
70 g schwarze Schokolade, in Würfeli

Guss
20 g Puderzucker
2-3 EL Amaretto

Marzipan in Stücke schneiden. Weiche Butter und Marzipanstücke schaumig rühren. Zucker, Vanillezucker und Eier nach und nach zugeben. So lange weiterrühren, bis der Zucker gelöst und die Masse hellcremig ist. Bittermandelaroma zufügen. Mehl und Backpulver mischen und unterrühren. Dabei soviel Milch zugiessen, dass der Teig schwerreissend von den Schneebesen fällt. Schokoladenwürfeli unterheben. Den Rührteig in die Form füllen. Kuchen im vorgeheizten Backofen bei 175°C 30-35 Minuten backen (Stäbliprobe machen!) Kuchen auf einem Gitter auskühlen lassen.

Puderzucker sieben, mit Amaretto zu einem dickflüssigen Guss verrühren, in ein Papierspritztütchen füllen und die Kuchen damit besprenkeln.

Honestly I wasn't very delighted when I saw this month's Daring Bakers challenge - hosted by Elle and Deborah. I'm a lazy cook, this recipe seemed very elaborated to me. In addition I saw that some of my fellow DB's had problems with a soupy cheesecake. So I was scared too! In spit of all that - as a "real" Daring Baker - I accepted this challenge.

Unbelievable, my cheesecake came out just perfect.

It had the right consistence to form the pops, but still it was toilsome to form them. I'm not a patient person, so I filled half of the cheesecake in ice cream molds and freeze them as well as the pops. I don't know yet how I will serve them, frozen or not? That night I slept well.

The next day my personal nightmare began: The topping! I melted dark chocolate and everything did go more or less smoothly. So I'm quite happy with my Cheesecake Pops. At the end of the day I was happy I took the challenge. Thank you Elle and Deborah!

Cheesecake Pops
recipe halved and converted to grams

570 g cream cheese at room temperature (I used low fat cream cheese)
200 g sugar
15 g all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 small eggs
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
30 g heavy cream (I used crème fraîche)
Boiling water as needed

16-20 lollipop sticks

100 g chocolate, finely chopped – you can use all one kind or half and half of dark, milk, or white (Alternately, you can use 1 pound of flavored coatings, also known as summer coating, confectionary coating or wafer chocolate – candy supply stores carry colors, as well as the three kinds of chocolate.)

1 tablespoons walnut oil

(Note: White chocolate is harder to use this way, but not impossible)


Assorted decorations such as chopped nuts, colored jimmies, crushed peppermints, mini chocolate chips, sanding sugars, dragees) - Optional

Some of the ingredients - Vanilla Extract imported from London

Position oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees F. Set some water to boil.

In a large bowl, beat together the cream cheese, sugar, flour, and salt until smooth. If using a mixer, mix on low speed. Add the whole eggs and the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well (but still at low speed) after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and cream.

Grease a 10-inch cake pan (not a springform pan), and pour the batter into the cake pan. Place the pan in a larger roasting pan. Fill the roasting pan with the boiling water until it reaches halfway up the sides of the cake pan. Bake until the cheesecake is firm and slightly golden on top, 50 minutes.

Remove the cheesecake from the water bath and cool to room temperature. Cover the cheesecake with plastic wrap and refrigerate until very cold, at least 3 hours or up to overnight.

When the cheesecake is cold and very firm, scoop the cheesecake into 2-ounce balls and place on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Carefully insert a lollipop stick into each cheesecake ball. Freeze the cheesecake pops, uncovered, until very hard, at least 1 – 2 hours.

When the cheesecake pops are frozen and ready for dipping, prepare the chocolate. In the top of a double boiler, set over simmering water, or in a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, heat half the chocolate and half the shortening, stirring often, until chocolate is melted and chocolate and shortening are combined. Stir until completely smooth. Do not heat the chocolate too much or your chocolate will lose it’s shine after it has dried. Save the rest of the chocolate and shortening for later dipping, or use another type of chocolate for variety.

Alternately, you can microwave the same amount of chocolate coating pieces on high at 30 second intervals, stirring until smooth.

Quickly dip a frozen cheesecake pop in the melted chocolate, swirling quickly to coat it completely. Shake off any excess into the melted chocolate.

Frozen pops and 70 % dark chocolate.

If you like, you can now roll the pops quickly in optional decorations. You can also drizzle them with a contrasting color of melted chocolate (dark chocolate drizzled over milk chocolate or white chocolate over dark chocolate, etc.) Place the pop on a clean parchment paper-lined baking sheet to set. Repeat with remaining pops, melting more chocolate and shortening (or confectionary chocolate pieces) as needed.

Refrigerate the pops for up to 24 hours, until ready to serve.

More entries and recipes in English.

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November 2007 Challenge - Tender Potatoe Bread
December 2007 Challenge - Yule Log
January 2008 Challenge - Lemon Meringue Pie
February 2008 Challenge - French Bread
March 2008 Challenge - Perfect Party Cake

Solche Gerätschaften hat der Profi-Bäcker im Einsatz.

Wer weiss worum es sich handelt?

Ich hoffe im Verlauf der nächsten Woche bin ich mit meinem Bericht fertig. Stay tuned!

Meine beiden Grosis haben leider nie Gugelhopf gebacken. Meine Lieblingsgrossmutter hat meist Kastenkuchen gebacken, aber nie Hefekuchen. Egal, ich kann das ja inzwischen selbst. ;-)

Letztes Jahr habe ich schon mal den Gugelhupf von Sarah Wiener bzw. Chrisinte Ferber gebacken. Der war sehr lecker.

Dieses Rezept stammt aus dem Betty Bossi Buch Backstube. Aber wie so oft habe ich das Rezept etwas abgeändert. Ich habe nur 80 g anstelle von 120 g Zucker verwendet und mich an die Anleitung von Wiener/Ferber gehalten. Das nächste Mal würde ich jedoch etwas mehr Zucker nehmen, denn etwas süsser dürfte der Gugelhopf schon sein. Was auch wichtig ist während der Gugelhopf backt nicht telefonieren, damit man ab und zu einen Blick in den Ofen werfen kann und dann auch sieht wenn er zu dunkel wird. Zum Glück nur auf der Unterseite. ;-)

Grosis Gugelhopf

500 g Mehl
10 g Trockenhefe
180 g lauwarme Milch
100 g Zucker
1 TL Salz
200 Butter, weich in Stücken
2 Eier (M), verklopft
100 g gemischte Dörrfrüchte, klein geschnitten
50 g Mandelblättchen

Mandelblättchen für die Garnitur

ca. 200 g des Mehles mit der Trockenhefe, Zucker und dem Milch mischen. Zugedeckt 30 Minuten stehen lassen.

Restliche Zutaten Zutaten bis und mit Eier in der Küchenmaschiene zuerst 1 Minute auf Stufe 1 (Bosch MUM 8)dann weitere 6 Minuten auf Stufe 2 kneten. Der Teig muss glänzend und geschmeidig sein. Die Dörrfrüchte und Mandeln hinzufügen und gut unterkneten (Stufe 1.5 Bosch MUM 8). Den Teig in der Küchenmaschine belassen, zugedeckt 1,5 Stunden oder bis er sein Volumen fast verdoppelt hat gehen lassen.
Teig nochmals 1 Minute auf Stufe 2 (Bosch MUM 8) kneten, weitere 20 Minuten gehen lassen.

Mandelblättchen in der Gugelhupf-Form verteilen. Wer keine Silikonform hat, muss die Form zuerst grosszügig ausbuttern. Teig in der Form verteilen. Zugedeckt nochmal 1,5 Stunden gehen lassen, damit er sein Volumen ungefähr verdoppeln kann.

Backofen auf 200 C vorheizen. Bevor der Gugelhupf in den Ofen geschoben wird die Temperatur auf 180 C herunterschalten. 45 Minuten in der unteren Hälfte des Ofens backen.
Den Gugelhupf aus der Form auf ein Kuchengitter stürzen und abkühlen lassen.

Dies ist mein Beitrag zu foodfreaks monatlichem Event Dein Kochbuch das unbekannte Wesen.

Gladly I accepted this month's Daring Bakers challenge - hosted by Morven - and tried to bake the Perfect Party Cake. Unfortunately I failed and I have to acknowledge it was my fault.

The original recipe makes a huge cake, so I decided to half the recipe. I have only one baking ring so I decided to bake the cake in this 16 cm ring instead of two. Bad idea, I let it bake longer but it was not baked through. Unfortunately I noticed this only the next day.

Horror!

I hate to waste food, so I did go one and made the buttercream, of course it separated but this time I was warned (see below in the recipe) and it came together again. Hooray!

We were allowed to play around with the recipe (big thankyou to Morven!), so I added some Kirsch to the buttercream, soaked the "under baked" cake as well with Kirsch, filled it with canned cherries and topped it with icing sugar and almond flakes.

The result - tadaa:

Perfect Not so Perfect Party Cake - still edible even if doesn't look so

The masterpiece in his glory *hahaha*


and cut.

Perfect Party Cake Recipe - the original

2 1/4 cups cake flour (updated 25 March)
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 ¼ cups whole milk or buttermilk (I prefer buttermilk with the lemon)
4 large egg whites
1 ½ cups sugar
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1 stick (8 tablespoons or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ teaspoon pure lemon extract

For the Buttercream
1 cup sugar
4 large egg whites
3 sticks (12 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
¼ cup fresh lemon juice (from 2 large lemons) - I used Kirsch
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For Finishing
2/3 cup seedless raspberry preserves stirred vigorously or warmed gently until spreadable - I used canned cherries
About 1 ½ cups sweetened shredded coconut - I used almond flakes

Getting Ready
Centre a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter two 9 x 2 inch round cake pans and line the bottom of each pan with a round of buttered parchment or wax paper. Put the pans on a baking sheet.

To Make the Cake
Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.
Whisk together the milk and egg whites in a medium bowl.
Put the sugar and lemon zest in a mixer bowl or another large bowl and rub them together with your fingers until the sugar is moist and fragrant.
Add the butter and working with the paddle or whisk attachment, or with a hand mixer, beat at medium speed for a full 3 minutes, until the butter and sugar are very light.

Beat in the extract, then add one third of the flour mixture, still beating on medium speed.
Beat in half of the milk-egg mixture, then beat in half of the remaining dry ingredients until incorporated.
Add the rest of the milk and eggs beating until the batter is homogeneous, then add the last of the dry ingredients.
Finally, give the batter a good 2- minute beating to ensure that it is thoroughly mixed and well aerated.
Divide the batter between the two pans and smooth the tops with a rubber spatula.
Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the cakes are well risen and springy to the touch – a thin knife inserted into the centers should come out clean
Transfer the cakes to cooling racks and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes, unfold them and peel off the paper liners.
Invert and cool to room temperature, right side up (the cooled cake layers can be wrapped airtight and stored at room temperature overnight or frozen for up to two months).

To Make the Buttercream
Put the sugar and egg whites in a mixer bowl or another large heatproof bowl, fit the bowl over a plan of simmering water and whisk constantly, keeping the mixture over the heat, until it feels hot to the touch, about 3 minutes.
The sugar should be dissolved, and the mixture will look like shiny marshmallow cream.
Remove the bowl from the heat.
Working with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer, beat the meringue on medium speed until it is cool, about 5 minutes.
Switch to the paddle attachment if you have one, and add the butter a stick at a time, beating until smooth.
Once all the butter is in, beat in the buttercream on medium-high speed until it is thick and very smooth, 6-10 minutes.
During this time the buttercream may curdle or separate – just keep beating and it will come together again.
On medium speed, gradually beat in the lemon juice, waiting until each addition is absorbed before adding more, and then the vanilla.
You should have a shiny smooth, velvety, pristine white buttercream. Press a piece of plastic against the surface of the buttercream and set aside briefly.

To Assemble the Cake
Using a sharp serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion, slice each layer horizontally in half.
Put one layer cut side up on a cardboard cake round or a cake plate protected by strips of wax or parchment paper.
Spread it with one third of the preserves.
Cover the jam evenly with about one quarter of the buttercream.

Top with another layer, spread with preserves and buttercream and then do the same with a third layer (you’ll have used all the jam and have buttercream leftover).
Place the last layer cut side down on top of the cake and use the remaining buttercream to frost the sides and top.
Press the coconut into the frosting, patting it gently all over the sides and top.

Serving
The cake is ready to serve as soon as it is assembled, but I think it’s best to let it sit and set for a couple of hours in a cool room – not the refrigerator. Whether you wait or slice and enjoy it immediately, the cake should be served at room temperature; it loses all its subtlety when it’s cold. Depending on your audience you can serve the cake with just about anything from milk to sweet or bubbly wine.

Storing
The cake is best the day it is made, but you can refrigerate it, well covered, for up to two days. Bring it to room temperature before serving. If you want to freeze the cake, slide it into the freezer to set, then wrap it really well – it will keep for up to 2 months in the freezer; defrost it, still wrapped overnight in the refrigerator.

Playing Around
Since lemon is such a friendly flavour, feel free to make changes in the preserves: other red preserves – cherry or strawberry – look especially nice, but you can even use plum or blueberry jam.

Fresh Berry Cake
If you will be serving the cake the day it is made, cover each layer of buttercream with fresh berries – use whole raspberries, sliced or halved strawberries or whole blackberries, and match the preserves to the fruit. You can replace the coconut on top of the cake with a crown of berries, or use both coconut and berries. You can also replace the buttercream between the layers with fairly firmly whipped sweetened cream and then either frost the cake with buttercream (the contrast between the lighter whipped cream and the firmer buttercream is nice) or finish it with more whipped cream. If you use whipped cream, you’ll have to store the cake the in the refrigerator – let it sit for about 20 minutes at room temperature before serving.


More entries and recipes in English.

daring bakers

To see real Perfect Party Cakes visit the Daring Bakers Blogroll

November 2007 Challenge - Tender Potatoe Bread
December 2007 Challenge - Yule Log
January 2008 Challenge - Lemon Meringue Pie
February 2008 Challenge - French Bread

Schon wieder ein Jahr älter! Nicht nur die Jahre werden immer mehr sondern auch die Pfunde, die grauen Haare und Falten. Egal, heute wird hemmungslos geschlemmt! Für den Hüftspeck gibt es dieses Jahr keine Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte sondern ein einfacher aber trotzdem sehr leckerer Café latte-Marmorcake.

Ich habe öfters das Problem, dass sich die Eimasse scheidet. Hier auch. Ich glaube das kommt, wenn die Zutaten unterschiedliche Temperaturen haben. Das ist aber nicht so schlimm, sobald man das Mehl dazugibt bindet alles wieder.

Café latte-Marmorcake

150 g weiche Butter
1/2 Päcklein Vanillinzucker
1 Prise Salz
89 80 g Zucker
5 Eier
180 g Mehl
1 TL Backpulver
200 g gemahlene Mandeln
180 g gesüsste Kondensmilch
2 Päcklein Nescafé-Pulver (4 g)
1/2 EL Kakaopulver

Puderzucker zum Bestäuben

Fett, Vanillin-Zucker, Salz und Zucker cremig rühren (Bosch MUM 8 Stufe 4 ca. 2 Minuten).

Eier nacheinander unterrühren. Mehl und Backpulver mischen, auf die Eiermasse sieben. Mandeln zufügen und alles unterrühren.

Teig halbieren. 90 g Kondensmilch, Kaffeepulver und Kakao verrühren, unter eine Teighälfte rühren. 90 g Kondensmilch unter die andere Hälfte rühren. Erst hellen, dann dunklen Teig in eine gefettete, mit Mehl ausgestreute Kastenform (25 cm) füllen. Mit einer Gabel kreisförmig durch den Teig ziehen. Kuchen im vorgeheizten Backofen bei 175 Grad ca 55 Minuten backen.

Kuchen auskühlen lassen, mit Puderzucker bestäuben.

In February love and the smell of mimosa is in the air since mimosa trees start to bloom in this season here in Andalucia. Everywhere you see yellow spots, and if the poniente (westerly wind) blows their pleasant smell indulge your senses and so does the Mimosa cake. ;-)

It's obvious from where the cake's name originates: From the yellow-shiny Mimosa Flowers. The cake is exceptionally heart-shaped since it's my contribution to my A heart for your Valentine event.

The Mimosa cake consists of a moist but still fluffy sponge cake. To get such a sponge you must whisk it well and once baked wrap it up in a kitchen towel. That's the trick. I made a lemon filling since I have tons of lemons in my garden, but you can fill it with whatever you want or your sweetheart likes. Also you can soak the sponge with some liqour. I didn't because I have no Limoncello, and I think this would be the only one that harmonize with the lemon filling.


Mimosa Cake

Sponge cake
4 eggs (M)
150 g sugar
1 pinch of salt
100 g flour
50 g Maizena
1 pack vanilla sugar

Lemon filling
2,5 dl water
1 pinch of salt
30 g butter

0,5 dl water
3 tbs Maizena
2 egg yolks (M)
130 g sugar

zest of 2 lemon
1 dl fresh lemon juice

Sponge Cake: Add eggs, sugar, vanilla sugar and salt in the bowl of your Stand mixer.

Whisk (position 4 Bosch MUM 8) until your mixture thickens and turns almost white in colour. This will take about 8 minutes. Sieve both the flour and the Maizena and gently fold into your mixture until you can see it has all mixed together nicely. Pour your sponge cake mixture into your 20 cm tin.

Place in a pre-heated oven at 180 C for approx 20-30 minutes (depending on your oven). Watch out the last minutes, mine get a little bit dark. Once cooked leave in its tin for about 10 minutes to cool a little. Unomold an wrap up in a kitchen towel and let cool completely. I let the sponge cake in the towel until the next day.

Take a large bread knife and gently cut your cake in two layers. One layer should be a little bit thicker then the other. Hollow out the thicker cake layer leaving sides and bottom about 1/2 cm and reserve the crumbs.

Lemon Filling: Bring 2,5 dl water, salt and butter to a boil. Remove from heat. Dissolve Maizena in 0,5 dl water, add egg yolks and sugar. Whisk well. Pour gently into the hot water/butter mixture whisking constantly, return to heat bring to a boil. Remove from heat, add lemon zest and juice stirring until combined. Pour 2/3 of the mixture into the prepared sponge cake.

Place your lid on top. Cover the whole cake with the remaining filling, spread the crumbs over the whole surface, make them stick pressing gently it down with your hands. Let cool at least 1-2 hours.

Happy Valentine's Day to everyone!

The "A Heart for your Valetine" roundup can be found here.

More recipes and entries in English.