Italian Choux Bun Cake
This cake takes a bit of time and patience but is well worth the effort. We entered it in the November Laura Loves Cakes competition in collaboration with Laura Loves Cakes and Dolly Bakes
You will need to prepare:
- a sponge cake ( pan di spagna)
- biscuits for the side ( lingue di gatto)
- choux buns
- creams to fill the cake
- chocolate ganache topping
You can bake the choux buns and the lingue di gatto up to three or four days in advance as they keep well in a tin box; the pan di spagna also keeps well if wrapped in cling film and can be prepared a couple of days in advance. The creams to fill the cake can be prepared the day before.
75 g plain flour
75 g cornflour
150 g sugar
5 eggs ( the best quality you can find)
Put the eggs and the sugar in a planetary mixer then mix with the whisk for a good 10 to 15 minutes at a fairly high speed. As a result you will have a firm foam. Gently sift the flour in the mixture while mixing it with a spatula with slow rotatory motions from the bottom to the top of the foam.
Bake in a preheated oven at 180 C for 35 to 40 minutes. Let it cool in the mould.
If you are thinking of making a special cake bake the sponge the day before and then , once completely cool, wrap it in cling film. It will be easier to cut it this way.
You can make a syrup with water and sugar (more or less 500 g of water and 2 espresso cups of sugar ) just by boiling the ingredients until the sugar is completely dissolved; let it cool and then use it to moist the layers of cake.
Add a few spoons of a liquor like Gran Marnier or Amaretto if you like it.
Lingue Di Gatto
100g unsalted butter, softened
100 g icing sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
100g plain flour
4 egg whites
1 tsp vanilla paste or extract
Preheat the oven to 200C ; line six cookie sheets with baking paper.
With an electric mixer, beat the butter, sugar, and vanilla until creamy. Gradually beat in the flour, a few spoonfuls at a time.
Eventually beat in the egg whites.
Fill a pastry bag fitted with a 5mm plain tip with the batter and pipe out 5 to 6 cm long cookies on the cookie sheets, spacing them 4 or 5 cm apart.
Bake for 7 minutes, one sheet at the time, until the cookies are firm to the touch but still pale and only very lightly browned around the edges. Remove them to cooling racks.
If you like your cookies very crispy, after baking the last batch return all the cookies to the oven for a few minutes ( about 5), switch the oven off and let the cookies to cool in the oven.
Once completely cool store in a tin jar.
Chocolate Ganache
Make the ganache just about half an hour before you are ready to use it.
120 g dark chocolate
100 g cream
1 tsp hazelnut or almond oil
Bring the cream to the boil. Add the chocolate. Once the chocolate is melted add the teaspoon of oil and stir thoroughly. Wait for the ganache to cool a little and the pour onto the cake.
Choux Buns
200 ml water
100g butter
3g fine salt
1 tsp caster sugar
130g plain flour, sifted
4 medium free-range eggs
For the choux pastry, preheat the oven to 220C (static).
Line two baking trays with parchment paper.
Put the water, butter, salt and caster sugar in a saucepan set over a high heat for one minute, until the mix reaches the boil. Turn off the heat and, stirring all the time, quickly add the flour until the mixture is very smooth.
When the mixture is smooth, return the pan to the heat and stir with the spatula for one minute. The paste will begin to poach and some of the water will evaporate. Don’t let the paste dry out too much, or it will crack during cooking.
Immediately remove from the heat and add the eggs, one at a time, mixing in with a spatula or an electric beater between each addition. You can also transfer the dough to a planetary mixer and add the eggs there.
Stir well until the eggs are thoroughly combined and the paste has a very smooth texture. It is now ready to use.
Carefully spoon the mixture into a large piping bag fitted with a plain 1cm/½in nozzle.
Pipe small buns on the prepared baking trays. Transfer the baking trays to the oven and cook for 15 minutes, then lower the temperature to 190 C for further 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven and cool completely before storing in a tin box.
Crema Pasticcera - Italian Custard
500ml full-fat milk
6 free-range egg yolks
150g caster sugar
50g plain flour, sifted
Warm the milk in a saucepan, and beat the egg yolks and sugar together in a separate bowl until pale and creamy.
Pour half the milk onto the egg yolk mixture and stir well, then add the flour. Mix very well , add the remaining milk and return the mixture to the pan.
Bring the mixture to the boil stirring constantly. Transfer the custard to a bowl and cover it with cling film to avoid the formation of a film on top.
You can flavour your cream according to your taste by adding chocolate, hazelnuts, pistachios, coffee.. according to taste.
Construct the Cake
Cut the cake in 3 or for layers ( we use a cake cutting wire). Wet the first layer with some of the syrup, then distribute the cream on top. Add a layer, wet it with the syrup and then spread the cream/ Continue until the last layer. You can use different flavoured creams, the cake in the picture had two layers of hazelnut cream and one of plain custard.
Pour the chocolate ganache onto the cake. Using the ganache stick the Lingue di Gatto onto the side of the cake.
Fill the choux buns with whipped cream or with the left overs of the custards then gently put them on top of the cake.
Sprinkle with icing sugar and a few chopped hazelnuts.
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