Chocolate Ladyfingers And Cake Rounds Food

CHOCOLATE LADYFINGERS AND CAKE ROUNDS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift flour, cocoa powder, and salt into a small bowl.
• Whisk whites with a mixer on medium-high speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add 2/3 cup sugar, whisking until stiff, shiny peaks form, about 5 minutes. Whisk yolks with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in a medium bowl until thick and pale, about 3 minutes. Fold yolk mixture into whites, then fold in flour mixture in 2 additions.
• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. On 1 piece, draw two 6-inch circles, then flip parchment over. Spoon batter into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch round tip. Starting in the center of each circle, pipe a spiral, leaving a 1-inch border around inside edge of circle. Bake until springy to the touch, 15 to 18 minutes. Transfer parchment with rounds to a wire rack, and let cool.
• On the other piece of parchment, draw 4 rows, each 3 1/2 inches wide for the ladyfingers. Pipe 1-inch-wide ladyfingers horizontally between pairs of lines, so they're touching, and lightly dust with cocoa. Bake until springy to the touch, about 15 minutes. Transfer parchment with ladyfingers to a wire rack, and let cool. Use immediately.

CHOCOLATE CHARLOTTE

Steps:

• Filling: Place chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl. In a small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over 2 tablespoons milk; let stand until softened, about 5 minutes. In another medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks and granulated sugar.
• Bring 1/4 cup cream and remaining 1/4 cup milk to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add one-third of cream mixture to yolk mixture, whisking constantly. Add remaining cream mixture in a slow, steady stream, whisking constantly; return to saucepan. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until custard coats the back of a spoon, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in gelatin mixture. Strain mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into bowl with chocolate; let stand until softened, 1 minute. Stir until smooth. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto surface to prevent skin from forming; let cool completely.
• Whisk remaining 3/4 cup cream to soft peaks and gently fold into custard. Refrigerate until ready to assemble, up to 1 day.
• Ladyfingers and Cake Layers: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using a pencil and ruler, make a template that will be the guide for piping ladyfingers and cake layers: On a piece of parchment, draw two sets of parallel lines spaced 3 1/2 inches apart. On a second piece of parchment, trace three 5-inch circles. Place each piece of parchment, pencil-side down, on an unrimmed baking sheet. Sift together flour and 1/4 cup cocoa into a medium bowl.
• In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat together egg whites, salt, and vanilla on medium speed until frothy. Increase speed to high and gradually add 1/2 cup granulated sugar, beating until stiff, glossy peaks form, about 3 to 5 minutes. In a separate bowl fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg yolks with remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar until thick and pale yellow, about 2 minutes. Gently fold egg-yolk mixture into egg-white mixture, then fold in flour mixture in three additions. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a 1/2-inch round tip.
• Pipe ladyfingers crosswise onto prepared templates, spacing 1/4 inch apart (you'll need about 16), then pipe cake rounds, starting in center of each circle and spiraling outward until you reach edge of template. Whisk together remaining 1 tablespoon cocoa and confectioners' sugar; sift over cake rounds. Bake ladyfingers and cake rounds until firm and springy, about 14 minutes. Transfer sheets to wire racks; let cool completely.
• Assembly: Place a 6-by-3-inch cake ring on a parchment-lined baking sheet; line ring with a 20-by-3-inch parchment strip to form a collar. Bring rum and granulated sugar just to a boil in a small saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved; remove from heat. Place ladyfingers standing upright inside of ring, with domed sides facing out (use just enough to fit snugly). Place one cake layer at bottom of ring. Brush ladyfingers and cake with rum syrup. Pour half of chocolate filling into cake ring and top with a second cake layer. Brush cake with syrup and top with remaining chocolate filling. Top with final cake layer and brush with syrup. Refrigerate until firm, at least 4 hours or overnight.
• Just before serving, whisk cream and confectioners' sugar to soft peaks. Carefully remove charlotte from bottom piece of parchment and transfer, still in cake ring, to serving platter. Remove ring and gently peel off parchment strip. Dollop whipped cream on top of cake and sprinkle with chocolate shavings.

DARK CHOCOLATE LADYFINGERS

Steps:

• For the ladyfingers: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and dust lightly with confectioners' sugar.
• Sift together the flour, cocoa powder and salt in a bowl.
• Put the egg whites in a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until frothy. Gradually add 1/2 cup of the granulated sugar and beat until stiff, shiny peaks form, about 6 minutes.
• In a medium bowl, beat the yolks and remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar until pale and thick. Beat in the vanilla. Gently fold the yolks into the egg whites; it's okay if some streaks remain. Add the flour mixture and fold gently, but thoroughly, until well mixed.
• Spoon the mixture into a piping bag fitted with a 3/4-inch plain tip. Pipe 3-inch-long, 1-inch-wide ladyfingers about 1/2 inch apart. Dust the tops of the cookies lightly with confectioners' sugar. Bake until springy to the touch, 16 to 18 minutes. Cool completely.
• For the decoration: Combine the chocolate and coconut oil in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave, stirring every 30 seconds, until melted. Dip one end of each ladyfinger in the chocolate, then sprinkle with the coconut over parchment paper. Place on a serving platter.
• Refrigerate until set. Serve immediately or keep refrigerated until ready to serve, up to 4 hours (ladyfingers dry out quickly).

CHOCOLATE LADYFINGERS

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Sift the cake flour and cocoa powder together in a small mixing bowl and set aside. Place the egg whites in a large mixing bowl and whip until foamy with an electric mixer set on medium speed. Make a French meringue by adding the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time. When you whip egg whites, add the sugar slowly to allow the whites to gain some volume. When you have volume, add the rest of the sugar. Increase the mixer speed to medium-high and whip to stiff but not dry peaks, about 5 minutes. When the whites are slightly stiff, reduce the mixer speed to low to allow even more air to be incorporated without over whipping the egg whites. Let the egg whites continue to whip for about another 2 minutes. Stop whipping them if they begin to look dry or separated.
• Very gently, fold the egg yolks into the whipped egg whites with a rubber spatula until they are partially incorporated. Carefully fold the sifted mixture into the egg mixture. It is important to fold as gently as possible to avoid deflating the batter. Remember to fold all the way to the bottom of the bowl to fully incorporate both mixtures.
• Place the batter in a pastry bag fitted with a 3/4-inch plain tip. To pipe the ladyfingers, hold the pastry bag at a slight angle and allow the tip to touch the parchment paper as you start to pipe. Squeeze gently, applying even pressure as you pipe the desired length, then stop squeezing and lift the tip straight up, leaving a small tail on the end of each ladyfinger. Pipe evenly shaped ladyfingers about 3/4-inch wide on a parchment paper-covered sheet pan. Space them about 1/2-inch apart to allow them room to spread as they bake. Dust the tops of the ladyfingers with powdered sugar to give them a nice crust.
• Bake the ladyfingers until light and evenly browned, about 5 minutes. (The browning may be difficult to discern with the chocolate ladyfingers.) Remove from the oven and immediately move to a wire rack to prevent the heat of the pan from continuing to bake the ladyfingers. Set aside until ready to use. When cooled, the ladyfingers can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the freezer, well wrapped in plastic wrap, for up to 2 weeks.

CHOCOLATE DOUBLE NUT CARAMEL LADYFINGER TORTE (NO BAKE)

Steps:

• Prepare a 9-inch springform baking pan.
• Microwave chocolate chips on HIGH until melted, stirring every 30 seconds; cool 5 minutes and set aside.
• Split the ladyfingers, then stand the halves around the edges of the 9-inch springform pan (placing the rounded sides of ladyfingers against the pan).
• Line the bottom of the pan with the remaining ladyfingers (reserving any remaining ones for other uses).
• Spread the Nutella spread evenly over the ladyfingers on the bottom of the pan.
• Cook the caramels and 1/3 cup whipping cream in a medium heavy saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly JUST until melted; remove from heat and stir in chopped pecans until coated.
• Spoon the caramel/nut mixture evenly over the Nutella spread in the pan.
• In a medium bowl beat 1/3 cup confectioners sugar with softened cream cheese at medium speed with an electric mixer until fluffy about 4 minutes) then add in the Creme de Cacao; beat until blended, then add in the melted chocolate chips.
• Beat the remaining 2 cups whipping cream in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until stiff; fold into the cream cheese mixture, then spoon evenly over the caramel mixture in the pan.
• Shave the baking squares using a veggie peeler evenly on top, then sprinkle with about 3 tablespoons confectioners sugar (or to taste).
• Chill for 3 hours before serving.
• Delicious!

CHERRY LADYFINGER DESSERT

Steps:

• Split the ladyfingers, then stand the halves around the edges of the 9-inch springform pan (placing the rounded sides of ladyfingers against the pan).
• Line the bottom of the pan with lady fingers split side up. Save the rest. They are used later.
• Brush with liqueur; set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth and fluffy.
• Add sugar and 1/2 teaspoon almond exact, beating well.
• In a small mixing bowl, whip cream until soft peaks form; fold into cream cheese mixture.
• Spoon half into the ladyfinger-lined pan.
• Top with remaining fingers in a layer and top with remaining cream cheese mixture.
• Top with cherry pie filling now OR, you can wait until right before you serve it.
• Cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
• Optional: For added flavor, pour cherry pie filling into a bowl ahead of time, and stir with 1/4 tsp almond extract. Cover and refrigerate for a few hours prior to using in the recipe. For one cup liquid heavy cream to be whipped (will double in volume), use 2 cups thawed COOL WHIP/.

LADY FINGERS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment or wax paper.
• Beat the yolks and 1/2 cup sugar on high for 5 minutes until ribbons fall from beater.
• Lower speed and beat in vanilla and water.
• Increase speed and beat for 30 seconds to thicken.
• Sift the flour over this and set aside, without mixing.
• In another bowl, beat egg whites until foamy, then add cream of tartar.
• Beat until soft peaks form.
• Gradually beat in remaining 1/4 cup sugar.
• Continue beating until stiff peaks form.
• Add 1/3 of the whites to the yolk bowl and fold until all the flour is incorporated.
• Gently fold in remaining whites.
• Working quickly to avoid deflation, scoop 4 cups into a large pastry bag with a 3/4 tip.
• Pipe 3 inch by 1 1/2 inch'fingers' 1/4 inch apart.
• They will attach during baking.
• Be sure and let the batter fall from the tip, rather than pressing onto the sheet.
• If you are making a bottom for a cheesecake, pipe a spiral, ending at about 10 inches in diameter.
• Sift the powdered sugar over- the batter will absorb some.
• Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until springy to the touch.
• Remove to racks and cool slightly.
• Remove from parchment with long spatula while still warm.
• Or invert disc onto towel-covered rack and reinvert back to plain rack.