Rose's Heavenly Cakes (40 page)

Special Equipment

One 17¼ by 12¼ by 1-inch half-sheet pan, bottom coated lightly with nonstick cooking spray or shortening, lined with a nonstick liner or parchment, and then coated with baking spray with flour    |    One 9-inch springform, loose-bottom pan, or a flan ring at least 2½ inches high

Preheat the Oven

Twenty minutes or more before baking, set an oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 450°F/230°C.

Mix the Dry Ingredients

In a small bowl, whisk the flour and cornstarch to combine them well.

Mix the Yolk Mixture

Separate 2 of the eggs, placing the yolks in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk beater. Place the egg whites in a medium bowl, preferably another mixer bowl. To the yolks, add the 2 remaining whole eggs, the additional yolk, and ½ cup of the sugar. Beat on high speed until thick, fluffy, and tripled in volume, about 5 minutes. Lower the speed and beat in the vanilla. (If you have only one stand mixer bowl, scrape the yolk mixture into a large bowl and whisk very thoroughly. Wash and dry the mixer bowl and whisk beater.)

Make the Batter

Sift half the flour mixture over the egg mixture and, using a large balloon whisk, slotted skimmer, or silicone spatula, fold it in gently but rapidly until the flour has disappeared. Repeat with the remaining flour mixture until all traces of the flour have disappeared.

Beat the Egg Whites into a Stiff Meringue

Attach the clean whisk beater. Beat the egg whites on medium-low 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 1 tablespoon of sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form when the beater is raised slowly.

Fold the meringue into the batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and, using a small offset spatula, smooth as evenly as possible.

Bake the Cake

Bake for 7 minutes, or until golden brown and the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the center.

Unmold and Cool the Cake

Unmold the cake at once. (If necessary, loosen the sides with the tip of a sharp knife.) Grasp the long edge of the liner and gently slide the cake onto a flat surface.

Allow the cake to cool completely. Remove the liner by flipping the cake over onto a piece of plastic wrap that has been coated lightly with nonstick cooking spray, and reinvert it so that the crust is up. (The top crust needs to be protected as it becomes part of the striped décor, so don't invert it directly onto the work surface.) If using parchment, you can run a long narrow spatula between it and the bottom of the cake. Leave the cake on the parchment.

Cut the Layers

If your half-sheet pan is the standard size listed above, the finished size of the cake is about 16¼ by 11¼ by ½ inches. (If the pan is slightly larger, the cake will be slightly less high, which means you may need to have one or two more stacked cake rectangles—you can make them from the scraps—and extra apricot preserves.)

Begin by cutting the cake widthwise into two unequal rectangles: The one for the round base needs to be 8 inches. The other, for the side pieces, can be longer.

To make the side pieces: Use a long serrated knife and ruler to cut a rectangle that will measure 11¼ by 8¼ inches. Cut this rectangle the long way into four even strips, each one exactly 2½ inches wide. Alternatively, mark where the cuts should be with the tip of a sharp knife and use scissors to cut the strips. The length of the strips will be about 8¼ inches.

To make the round base and extra side pieces: use an 8-inch pot lid or make a cardboard template and set it right at the short edges of the rectangle as a guide to cut the round base. Mark it with the tip of a sharp knife and use scissors to cut out the circle. Wrap the cake in plastic wrap to keep it soft and fresh, and refrigerate it until ready to complete the charlotte. Trim the scrap that was alongside the circle and cut it into three 2½ by 2-inch strips. (From each cake rectangle you will have a 1¼-inch strip left over. Save these pieces in case they are needed to fill in any gaps.)

Make the Strained Apricot Preserves

Heat the strained preserves, if necessary, so that they are fluid enough to spread onto the cake. If they are still too thick stir in a little hot water.

Layer the Cake

Set the first cake strip crust side down on a piece of plastic wrap, and with a small metal spatula, spread an even coating of preserves over its surface (about 4 teaspoons). Set the second strip crust side down evenly on top. Continue with the two remaining strips, spreading preserves also on the top of the last one. You will have about ¼ cup preserves left over for another use. The stacked cake should be 1½ inches high. Wrap it well with the plastic wrap, coated lightly with nonstick cooking spray, and freeze it until very firm, about 2 hours or overnight, or up to 2 months. (If frozen solid, you'll need to allow it to soften for about 10 minutes at room temperature before slicing.)

Use a small serrated knife to cut 3/8-inch slices, taking care not to compress the cake when slicing. If necessary, trim each slice so that it is exactly 2½ inches high when the strips are up and down. You will need about 20 slices to line the inside of the springform pan. The remaining cake can be refrozen. Keep the slices covered with plastic wrap until ready to line the mold.

Make the Poached Apples

Just before poaching, peel the apples, reserving the peel if it's red to add color to the syrup. Cut the apples in half and use a melon baller to core them.

In a saucepan or sauté pan just large enough to hold the apples in a single layer, combine the water, sugar, Calvados, lemon juice, vanilla bean, and the apple peel, if using, and stir to dissolve the sugar. Add the apples hollow side down and bring the liquid to a boil over medium heat. Immediately reduce the heat to very low and place a round of parchment on top of the apples to keep the rounded tops moist.

Poach tightly covered at a bare simmer for 5 minutes. Carefully turn each apple over and continue poaching for about 7 minutes, or until a wire cake tester inserted in the thickest part of an apple enters with only a little resistance. The apples should still be slightly firm. Watch carefully toward the end to prevent overcooking so that they keep their shape.

Remove the pan from the heat and cool at room temperature, covered only by the parchment; it will take about 1 hour to cool completely. Transfer the apples and their syrup, including the vanilla bean and peel, to a bowl. If not using immediately, cover it tightly and refrigerate until ready to use.

Drain the apples, reserving the liquid and vanilla bean and discarding the peel. Leave the apples in the bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate. Remove the vanilla bean and scrape the seeds into the liquid (rinse, dry, and reserve the pod for another use). If necessary, reduce the liquid or add water to equal 1¼ cups of syrup. (To reduce, use a 4-cup heatproof glass measure in a microwave on high power, or a small saucepan on the stove top.) You will need 1 cup of poaching syrup for the custard filling and ¼ cup for the glaze. Separate them into two containers, keeping them covered to prevent evaporation. Refrigerate the ¼ cup for the glaze.

Line the Mold

If molding the charlotte in a springform pan, remove the inner disk and place the outer ring directly on a serving plate. If using a loose-bottom pan, leave the inner disk in place but line it with a parchment round if you plan to remove the disk before serving. If using a flan ring, place it on a serving plate.

Lightly coat the inside of the ring and the serving plate with nonstick cooking spray or oil. Place the striped slices around the ring so that the stripes are straight up and down. In the unlikely event that you run short, use the scraps and leftover strained apricot preserves to create an extra rectangle to fill in the gap.

Fit the cake base into the bottom of the lined ring. Cover the ring tightly with plastic wrap and set it aside.

Make the Apple Caramel Custard

Have ready a fine-mesh strainer suspended over a large (2 quarts or larger) mixing bowl.

In a small bowl, place 2 tablespoons of the reserved poaching syrup and sprinkle the gelatin over the top. Stir to moisten the gelatin. Cover tightly with plastic wrap to prevent evaporation.

In a small heavy saucepan, using a silicone spatula, stir the yolks just until smooth.

In another small saucepan (or a heatproof glass measure if using a microwave on high power), heat the remaining reserved poaching syrup to the boiling point. Keep it hot.

In another small heavy saucepan, stir together the sugar and water until the sugar is dissolved. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Once it comes to a boil, cook without stirring until it turns a deep amber (370°F/188°C or a few degrees lower because its temperature will continue to rise). Remove it from the heat, and as soon as it reaches temperature, slowly and carefully pour the hot poaching liquid into the caramel. It will bubble up furiously.

Return the pan to very low heat, stirring, until the mixture is uniform in color and the caramel is fully dissolved.

Very gradually at first, stir the caramel poaching liquid into the yolks, stirring constantly. Stir in the gelatin mixture and salt. On medium-low heat, bring the mixture to just below the boiling point (180° to 190°F/80° to 88°C). Steam will begin to appear, and the mixture will be slightly thicker than heavy cream. It will leave a well-defined track when a finger is run across the back of a spoon. Immediately remove the mixture from the heat and pour it into the strainer, scraping up the thickened cream that settles on the bottom of the pan and pushing it through with the back of a spoon or silicone spatula. Set aside to cool completely.