Rose's Heavenly Cakes (34 page)

Plan Ahead

For best flavor, compose the cake 1 day ahead.

Make the Cake

Make one recipe for a génoise layer baked in a 9 by 2-inch round cake pan (see
White Gold Passion Génoise
). Add 4 teaspoons coffee extract to the beaten egg mixture or 2 teaspoons instant espresso powder, preferably Medaglia D'Oro, when heating the egg mixture. For the syrup, ½ cup/4 fluid ounces/4.2 ounces/118 grams hot espresso or strong freshly brewed coffee can be used in place of the water and extract or instant espresso powder. Be sure the coffee is hot when you are stirring in the sugar.

Make the Coffee Syrup

In a small saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, stir together the sugar and water until all the sugar is moistened. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly. Cover it at once and remove it from the heat. Cool completely. Transfer it to a measuring cup with a spout and stir in the Kahlúa and espresso powder. If the syrup has evaporated slightly, add water to equal ¾ cup of syrup.

Make the Mocha Whipped Ganache

In a food processor, process the chocolate with the espresso powder, if using, until very fine.

In a 1-cup or larger microwavable cup with a spout (or in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring often), scald the cream (heat to the boiling point; small bubbles will form around the periphery).

With the motor of the food processor running, pour the cream through the feed tube in a steady stream. Process a few seconds until smooth. If using the coffee extract, pulse it in. Scrape the mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer and refrigerate for 50 to 60 minutes, or until cold to the touch (65° to 68°F/20°C), stirring and scraping down the sides of the bowl three or four times. It will start to thicken as it chills. Alternatively, set the bowl in an ice water bath (see
Water Baths
) and stir frequently. Do not allow the mixture to get too cold or it will thicken too much to whip. When cool, stir in the vanilla.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk beater, whip the ganache on medium speed for about 3 minutes, or until it just starts to thicken, lighten in color, and the whisk marks become very distinct. (Be careful to avoid overbeating as the mixture will become grainy. If the mixture gets overbeaten and grainy, it can be restored by remelting, chilling, and rebeating it.) Remove the bowl from the stand and continue whipping using a long-handled whisk just until very soft, floppy peaks form when the whisk is raised. (The ganache will continue to thicken after a few minutes at room temperature.)

Compose the Cake

Use a long serrated knife and your fingertips to remove the top crust. Remove the parchment and scrape off any remaining bottom crust.

Brush the syrup evenly on the top and bottom of the cake. The génoise is now more tender and fragile and needs to be supported by a removable tart pan bottom or cardboard round when moved.

Spread a small amount of ganache on a 9-inch cardboard round or a serving plate and set the cake 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. Frost the top and sides with the ganache. If using the paper strips, slowly slide them out from under the cake.

Plan Ahead

For best flavor, compose the cake 1 day ahead.

Special Equipment

One 9 by 2-inch round cake pan, coated with baking spray with flour, then topped with a parchment round

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.

Prepare the Butter

In a medium microwavable bowl, or a medium saucepan over medium heat, warm the butter until almost hot (110° to 120°F/40° to 50°C). Cover it and keep it warm.

Mix the Cocoa and Water

In a medium bowl, whisk the cocoa and boiling water until the cocoa is completely dissolved. Whisk in the vanilla. Leaving the whisk in the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and cool the mixture to room temperature, about 20 minutes. To speed cooling, place the bowl in the refrigerator. Bring the mixture to room temperature before proceeding.

Beat the Eggs

In the bowl of a stand mixer, using a long-handled wire whisk, lightly combine the eggs and sugar. Set the bowl over a pan of simmering water and heat just until lukewarm to the touch, stirring constantly with the whisk to prevent curdling.

Attach the whisk beater. Beat the mixture on high speed for a minimum of 5 minutes. It will quadruple in volume and be very thick and airy. (A handheld mixer will take at least 10 minutes.)

While the eggs are beating, sift the flour.

Make the Batter

Remove 2 cups of the beaten egg mixture and whisk it thoroughly into the cocoa mixture.

Sift about half the flour over the remaining egg mixture and, with a slotted skimmer or silicone spatula, fold it in gently but rapidly until almost all the flour has disappeared. Repeat with the remaining flour until all traces of flour have disappeared. With your fingers, reach to the bottom of the bowl and press together any little pellets of flour that may have formed.

Rapidly fold the cocoa mixture into the batter until almost evenly incorporated. Using a large balloon whisk or silicone spatula, fold in the melted butter in two batches just until incorporated evenly. Immediately pour the batter into the prepared pan. It will be about three-quarters full (½ inch from the top of the pan).

Bake the Cake

Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown and starts to shrink slightly from the sides of the pan. It will rise in the center to a little above the sides of the pan and then sink slightly when baked fully.

To prevent the collapse of its delicate foam structure, while still hot, the génoise must be unmolded as soon as it is baked. Have ready a small metal spatula and two wire racks that have been coated lightly with nonstick cooking spray.

Unmold and Cool the Cake

Run the small metal spatula between the sides of the pan and the cake, pressing firmly against the pan, and invert the cake onto one of the prepared wire racks. Leaving the parchment in place, immediately reinvert the cake onto the second rack so that the firm upper crust keeps it from sinking. Cool completely.

Make the black raspberry Syrup

In a small saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, stir together the sugar and water until all the sugar is moistened. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil, stirring constantly. Cover it at once and remove it from the heat. Cool completely. Transfer it to a glass measure and stir in the Chambord liqueur. If the syrup has evaporated slightly, add water to equal ¾ cup of syrup.

Make the Peanut Butter Whipped Ganache

Heat the chocolate until almost completely melted. Use a small microwavable bowl, stirring with a silicone spatula every 15 seconds (or use the top of a double boiler set over hot, not simmering, water, stirring often—do not let the bottom of the container touch the water).

Remove the chocolate from the heat and, with the silicone spatula, stir until fully melted. Leave the chocolate in the container in which it was melted so that it stays warm, and whisk in the peanut butter. Stirring gently with a whisk, add the cream and vanilla. At first the mixture will be speckled, but keep stirring until smooth. It should feel cool to the touch (around 60°F/15°C). If it is warmer, refrigerate it briefly. It will not aerate if it is too cold. Whisk for a few seconds until soft peaks form when the whisk is raised. (Be careful to avoid overbeating as the mixture will become grainy. If it gets overbeaten and grainy, it can be restored by remelting, chilling, and rebeating it.)