Flourless Sacher Torte - Rich & Dense Chocolate Ganache Enveloped Cake

The Sacher Torte would have to be the world's most famous chocolate cake.  First created for Prince Metternich, by Franz Sacher, a 16 year old apprentice at the court, the original recipe has been a well kept secret since 1832.


Countless variations of Sacher Torte recipes exist, this is my version of the cake which captures the richness and denseness of the original.  This recipe uses almond meal instead of wheat flour so is totally gluten and wheat free.


This cake keeps well, and I often bake it the day before I ice it.

Flourless Sacher Torte

Ingredients:
Torte

     6 Eggs
     2/3 Cup Sugar
     160gr Butter
     200gr Dark Chocolate
     1 1/2 Cups Almond Meal
     Apricot Jam
 Ganache

     150gr Dark Chocolate
     100ml Pouring Cream


Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 170 degrees Celsius, and ensure the rack is positioned in the middle of the oven.
2. Separate the eggs and place the egg yolks and sugar into a mixer bowl and beat until pale and creamy.
3. In the meantime, place the 200gr of chopped chocolate and butter into a small pan and stir over a very low heat until just combined. The mixture should be tepid at all times - not hot.
4. Gently stir the warm chocolate / butter mixture into the creamed sugar and eggs.
5. Fold almond meal into the mixture.
6. Place the egg whites into another bowl and beat to stiff peak stage.
7. Stir 1/3 of the egg whites thoroughly into the chocolate almond mixture.
8. Gently fold the remaining egg whites through the mixture.
9. Pour into a greased round spring form cake tin that has had the base lined with baking paper.
10. Bake for around 1 hour - or until skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
11. Leave to rest for 15 minutes in the tin, then transfer to a cooling rack.
12. When cold, slice the cake through the middle and spread a generous layer of apricot jam on one half and sandwich together again.  Remove any crumbs on the cake's outer surface by gently brushing with a pastry brush.
13. Prepare the ganache by heating the cream until it just comes to the boil.  Remove from the heat and stir in the finely chopped chocolate until all the chocolate has melted.  Stir gently, to avoid introducing too many air bubbles.  Allow to cool slightly.
14. Pour a couple of tablespoons of ganache onto the cake and spread with a spatula to seal any crumbs and prepare the base for the remaining ganache.
15. Place the cake into the refrigerator for 5 minutes to set the thin layer of ganache.
16. Then cover the cake by pouring the remaining ganache onto the centre of the cake.  Working quickly, spread the mixture with a spatula to push the ganache over the edges and evenly onto the sides of the cake.
17. Allow the ganache to set.  This cake is traditionally served with a small dollop of whipped cream.

Fine Custard Pear Tart - French Style

With pears in season, it's a perfect time to take advantage of their current freshness and sweetness.

This is a simple tart, that is moist, sticky and slightly crunchy all in one.  Imagine a fine crust, topped with an equally fine layer of real egg custard with sweet slices of pear on top.  Add a dollop of slightly sweetened vanilla cream or eat it simply on its own.

Pear Tart

Ingredients:

  Pastry Dough 

     200gr White Flour

     1 Packet Vanilla Sugar

     100gr Softened Butter

     1 Egg

     Pinch of Salt

  Custard

     2 Egg Yolks

     250ml Cream

     60gr Sugar

     1 Packet Vanilla Sugar

     2 Tbs Corn or Potato Flour

  Topping

     3-4 Medium to Large firm but ripe Pears

     4-5 Tbs Apricot Jam

Method:

1. Sift the flour into a large bowl and add the vanilla sugar, salt, butter and egg.  Combine either with the dough hook of your electric mixer or by hand.
2. Once fully combined, knead the dough on a slightly floured bench top until the dough is smooth.  Wrap in plastic and place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to rest.
3. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to the size of your baking tray - I like to use my square cake pan 33cm x 23cm and place into the greased and floured tin ensuring the dough rises up the sides of the tin by about 2.5cm.
4. Pre-heat the oven to 175-200 degrees Celsius.  Place the racks in the middle of the oven.
5. Core and slice the pears into 1/2cm thick slices (I like to leave the skin on the pears, but if you wish, feel free to peel them.) and arrange, overlapping, in an attractive manner over the pastry covering the entire base.  
6. Prepare the custard by beating the egg yolks with the cream and mix in the sugar, vanilla sugar and corn / potato flour and then pour evenly over the prepared tart.
7. Bake for approximately 50 minutes until the custard has set and the tart is a deep golden colour.  You will notice the tart will have come away from the sides of the pan a little.
8. Place the apricot jam into a small pot and stir in 2 tablespoons of water - briefly bring to the boil.  Whilst the tart is still hot glaze the entire top with the hot apricot jam.  Allow to cool or serve warm.
9. Enjoy...

Homemade waffle cones: An easy way to jazz up plain ice cream

I must admit, I have a bit of a thing for ice cream cones - especially waffle cones.  The more cone, the less ice cream, the better!


It never occurred to me that I could make them myself until, a few years ago, I stumbled upon a waffle iron specifically designed for ice cream cones in a department store. Naturally, I had to have one, then and there, if only to complement the standard waffle iron I already owned!


Well, that was the start of a long journey to try and make the perfect cone.  The perfect cone still eludes me, however, the recipe outlined below is pretty good and still my favourite to date.


The batter for this recipe must be left to rest overnight, so you'll need to plan ahead when making these cones.

Waffle Ice Cream Cones
Ingredients:
  60gr Margarine
  1 Egg
  170gr Plain Flour
  170gr White Sugar
  1 pkt Vanilla Sugar (or a tablespoon of vanilla essence)
  250ml Water

1. In a medium sized bowl beat the margarine with the egg until light and fluffy.
2. Sift the flour, sugar and vanilla sugar into another bowl and mix to combine the ingredients.
3. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the margarine mix, alternating with the water until a smooth heavy flowing batter is achieved.
4. Cover the bowl with cling film and leave in the refrigerator to rest overnight.
5. The next day, the batter will more than likely have considerably thickened.  Add enough water until the batter is easy flowing again.
6. Preheat the waffle cone iron and when hot, spoon the appropriate amount of batter for your iron onto the hotplate.
7. Cook until golden brown.  
8. Whilst still very hot wrap the waffle 'pancake' around the cone mould and hold the shape into place until the cone has cooled enough to hold its form. (Due to the high heat of the cone, it's best to use a clean tea towel to assist with rolling the cone.)  If you prefer to make cone cases/cups, take two small bowls, where one fits inside the other and evenly drape the cone over the underside of the smaller bowl, then place the larger bowl over the top to shape.
9. Place onto a rack to thoroughly cool and crisp up.
10. Enjoy...

Banana Bread: Nature's wonder fruit just became a whole lot better

Banana bread - It was a favourite years ago and it's still a favourite now.  Whether you call it banana bread, banana loaf or banana cake, one thing's certain, we all love it.


There are countless variations of recipes, my favourite, is simple, fast and just about foolproof.  If you find yourself with some bananas that are overly ripe this is the perfect way to use them.  It's also possible to use thawed frozen bananas for this - just peel and wrap in cling film to freeze.  


Now you have NO excuses for throwing overly ripe brown bananas away!

Banana Bread

Required time:  10 minutes preparation, 55 minutes baking

Ingredients:

  Dry Ingredients:

     1 3/4 cups Plain flour

     3/4 cup Sugar

     1 cup Walnuts (coarsely chopped)

     1 1/4 tsp Baking powder

     1/4 tsp Salt

     1 tsp Cinnamon

  

Wet Ingredients 

     2 Eggs (lightly beaten)

     1/2 cup Rice bran oil

     3 Bananas (over ripe)

     1 tsp Vanilla extract or essence

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
2. Grease and flour a loaf tin approximately 23cm x 13cm x 8 cm.
3. In a large bowl combine all the dry ingredients, I like to use a hand whisk for this.
4. In a medium size bowl combine all the wet ingredients well.
5. Lightly fold the wet mixture into the dry ingredients until it has just combined - it is crucial to FOLD and NOT MIX the ingredients or you risk making your loaf rubbery and tough.
6. Turn the mix into the prepared tin and place on a rack in the middle of the oven.
7. Bake for approximately 50 - 55 minutes, at which stage the loaf should be golden brown.  To test whether the cake is fully cooked insert a skewer into the thickest part of the loaf and withdraw- if it's not sticky and no dough is stuck to it, then the cake is done.
8. Allow the loaf to cool for about 15 minutes in the pan, then remove and place onto a rack to fully cool.
9. Enjoy...

Forget Apricot Jam... Try these divine Apricot Dumplings (Marillenknödel)

It's summertime and the young apricot tree in the far corner of the garden has again produced a splendid crop of palate tingling golden fruit.  I had been eyeing them for weeks, checking their progress, sampling the odd apricot here and there, but it was only a week ago that they were just perfect.

With too many to eat, what to do?  Usually, I would make jam with the excess, but this year I decided to dry some and make apricot dumplings i.e. Marillenknödel.

You can't get a more Austrian dish than Marillenknödel - Imagine a perfectly ripe apricot enveloped in a soft dumpling dough rolled in sugary sweet crunchy caramelised breadcrumbs.  It's the Mozartkugel of the dumpling world!  


Every summer my grandmother made these, with extra helpings of the crumb mixture, just for me, because I could have eaten the crumbs alone by the spoonful (and I did!).

Well not much has changed, only that I now have to make the dumplings myself and I still double the amount of crumbs.

It may seem a lot of effort, but believe me, once you've tasted these you'll gladly make them again.

Apricot Dumplings

Required time:  1.5 hours

Ingredients:

     500 - 600gr Apricots

     1 Sugar cube per apricot

  Dumpling Dough 

     1kg Potatoes

     350gr Plain flour

     1 Egg

     Pinch of Salt

  Crumb Coating

     200gr Breadcrumbs

     200gr Sugar

     200gr Salt free butter

Method:

1. Wash and dry the apricots. Remove the stone by cutting half of the apricot open along the crease and replace it with a sugar cube.
2. Boil the potatoes in their skins until they are soft.  Drain and pour cold water over them so they cool to the touch.
3. Peel the skins off the potatoes and press them into a large bowl using a potato press if you have one, otherwise just mash them.
4. Add the egg, pinch of salt and sifted flour to the potatoes and mix well until a sticky dough forms.
5. Separate the dough into two portions and on a floured workbench roll each into a short, fat roll.  Cut slices off the dough and flatten into small rounds.  Place a prepared apricot on each round and firmly seal the dough around it.
6. Bring some water in a large cooking pot to the boil.  Whilst waiting for the water to boil, gently melt the butter in a large frying pan, add the breadcrumbs and sugar combining all ingredients well.  Stir over a medium heat until the crumbs become golden and the sugar caramelises a little - be careful not to burn the crumbs.  Remove from the heat.
7. Gently lower the dumplings into the simmering water and cook until they rise to the top and float - this is the sign they are done.  Remove and drain the excess water then immediately roll them in the warm crumb mixture.
8. Serve warm, on a plate with some extra crumbs sprinkled over the top and a light dusting of powdered sugar.
9. Enjoy...

Almond Biscotti - Simplicity at its best...

Why is it that some of the simplest things in life are often the best? These biscuits are no exception!


What better treat to include with an afternoon coffee than a few slices of almond biscotti (Italian for biscuits).  These double baked biscuits contain no added fat and are a perfect means to utilise any leftover egg whites from other recipes.


It's difficult to believe such a tasty rustic biscuit can be made with just 4 simple ingredients - egg whites, almonds, sugar and flour.


After trying these, you won't want to go back to the store bought version - guaranteed!

Almond Biscotti

Required time: TBA
Ingredients:
  4 Egg Whites
  100gr Caster Sugar
  120gr Almonds
  120gr Plain Flour


Method:

1. Place the egg whites into a bowl and whip to stiff peak stage.
2. Continue to whip the egg whites whilst gradually adding the sugar, until a glossy mixture is obtained.  Remove the bowl from the mixer.
3. Sprinkle the almonds over the egg whites and sift the flour evenly over the top.  Gently fold the four and almonds into the mix.  Be cautious not to over mix, but be sure to just combine enough until no lumps of flour exist.
4. Grease and flour a small loaf tin, ensuring you tap the tin upside down to remove excess flour.
5. Pour the mixture into the tin and gently tap the tin on a counter top a few times to remove any air bubbles trapped in the mixture.
6. Bake for 1 hour at 180 degrees or until firm to the touch.
7. Remove from the oven and allow to rest in the tin for about 10 minutes, then turn out the loaf and allow to thoroughly cool on a rack.
8. Once cold, slice thinly (you'll need a very sharp serrated knife and use a gentle sawing motion to cut through the almonds).  Bake the slices on a greased tray until golden for about 10-15 minutes at 150 degrees.
9. Again cool the slices on a rack and store in an airtight container.
10. Enjoy...

Rolling, Rolling, Rolling... Almond Crescents (Vanillekipferl)

Vanillekipferl are delightful small crescent shaped biscuits originating from Vienna, Austria.  Although they are traditionally made for Christmas, they can be enjoyed at any time of year and are a popular offering at Viennese cafes.


These biscuits have a very delicate flavour, that matures over the course of days, and can be stored for several weeks when kept in a cool environment.


Get ready to roll...

Almond Crescents

Required time: 20 minutes preparation, 1 hour refrigeration
Ingredients:
  560gr Plain Flour
  160gr Sugar
  400gr Butter (salt free)
  200gr Ground Almonds (or hazelnuts)
  100gr Powdered Sugar
  4pkts Vanilla sugar



Method:

1. Soften the butter to room temperature and cut into small pieces.
2. Place the flour, sugar, butter and ground almonds (hazelnuts) into a large bowl and mix / knead into a smooth dough.
3. Form the dough into a roll and wrap in clingwrap and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
4. Once the dough has chilled take small portions of it and roll in the palm of the hand into a sausage shape and place onto a baking tray lined with lightly greased baking paper, in the form of a crescent.
5. Bake at 175 degrees Celsius until golden brown (approximately 15 minutes).
6. Mix the vanilla sugar with the powdered sugar in a wide shallow bowl.
7. Once the biscuits are cooked, remove from the oven and allow to cool for a minute or so.
8. Carefully remove the biscuits from the tray (they must still be hot for this) and quickly roll one by one in the vanilla sugar mix until fully coated.
9. Place on a wire rack to cool.
10. Enjoy...

Glazed Almonds (Gebrannte Mandeln) - Who'd have thought it could be so easy?

Gebrannte Mandeln have long been a favourite of mine for as long as I can remember.  The fragrance of these cinnamon spiced, sugar coated almonds instantly conjures up fond memories of Christmas time in Austria.


Australia does have the equivalent, the glazed almond, however, I am yet to taste any that are as fresh, fragrant and crunchy as those offered at any Christkindlmarkt (Christmas market) in Europe.  Well, that was until I made my own...


After a little research and experimentation, I discovered this delightful treat could easily and quickly be made at home, which is just as well, because they disappear in a flash...

Glazed Almonds


Required time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
  200gr Sugar
  1pkt Vanilla sugar
  300gr Almonds (raw and whole)
  100ml Water
  Cinnamon (to taste, can be omitted if you prefer)


Method:

1. Lightly grease a baking tray with a cooking oil spray.
2. Place the sugar, vanilla sugar, cinnamon and water into a pan large enough to accommodate all the almonds and stir to combine.  I like to use a large frying pan for this.
3. Over a medium heat, stir the sugar syrup with a wooden spoon until the sugar begins to dissolve and the mixture starts to boil.
4. Carefully add the almonds to the bubbling mix and stir them in the syrup.  Stir the mix constantly, this ensures the almonds are evenly coated with sugar and that they do not over roast.  (Stirring is the key to success with this recipe.)
5. After 5 to 10 minutes you will notice the water begins to evaporate and the almonds become covered in a cloudy crystalline sugar coating.  Keep stirring, albeit a little slower to allow the pan to heat a little more and begin to caramelize the sugar.
6. Over the course of the next few minutes the sugar will caramelize, at this point it is critical you stir to ensure all the almonds obtain an even coating of the caramelized sugar.  You may hear the almonds 'popping' from the heat, this is a good sign, you're nearly there!
7. Once the almonds look dark and glossy, remove the pan from the heat and stir for another minute or so to slightly cool, then transfer to the prepared baking sheet.
8. Spread the almonds out into a single layer with the wooden spoon and then with the help of two forks quickly proceed to separate the almonds into single almonds on the tray.
9. Allow to cool.
10. Enjoy...