Hazelnut Crunch Cake With Mascarpone And Chocolate Food

HAZELNUT CRUNCH CAKE WITH MASCARPONE AND CHOCOLATE

Steps:

• This recipe originally appeared in Giada's Kitchen by Giada De Laurentiis. Clarkson Potter, 2008.
• Preheat the oven to 350 F. Butter and flour two 8-inch cake pans.
• Prepare the cake mix according to package instructions. Divide the
• batter between the cake pans and bake as directed. Remove from the
• oven and cool on a wire rack.
• To make the crunch, place the toasted nuts close together in a single
• layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Combine the granulated
• sugar and 1/3 cup of water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over
• medium-high heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Continue to
• boil the mixture until the sugar is light brown, about 8 minutes.
• Remove from the heat and let the bubbles subside, then pour the
• caramelized sugar over the nuts. Place the baking sheet in the
• refrigerator and let the nut crunch cool until hard, about 30 minutes. When the nut crunch is hardened and cool, place it on a cutting board
• and cut into small pieces, saving a few larger ones for decoration. Set
• aside.
• To make the filling, put the mascarpone, cream, confectioners' sugar,
• and vanilla into a large mixing bowl. Using an electric mixer, whip the
• cream mixture to soft peaks. Fold the chopped nut crunch into the
• whipped cream.
• To make the topping, place the chocolate chips, granulated sugar,
• and zest in a food processor. Process the mixture until the chocolate
• is finely ground.
• To assemble the cake, put 1 cake layer on a serving plate or cake
• stand. Top with a 1-inch layer of the whipped cream‚ hazelnut crunch
• filling. Place the second layer of cake on top of the first and frost the
• entire cake with the remaining filling. Sprinkle the top and sides of the
• cake with the ground chocolate topping and add some shards of nut
• crunch as decoration. Serve.

HAZELNUT CRUNCH CAKE WITH MASCARPONE AND CHOCOLATE

Steps:

• FOR THE CAKE:.
• Preheat the oven to 350º F.
• Butter and flour 2 (8-inch) cake pans.
• Prepare the cake mix according to package instructions.
• Divide the batter between the 2 cake pans and bake according to package instructions; remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.
• FOR THE CRUNCH:.
• Place the toasted nuts close together in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
• Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat.
• Stir the sugar mixture until dissolved.
• Bring to a boil and let cook until the sugar is light brown, about 8 minutes.
• Let the bubbles subside then pour the caramelized sugar over the nuts.
• Place the baking sheet in the refrigerator and let the sugar nut mixture cool until hard, about 30 minutes.
• When the sugar nut mixture is hard and cool, top with another piece of parchment paper and pound into small pieces, or place the sugar nut mixture on a cutting board and cut into small pieces; set aside.
• FOR THE FILLING:.
• Put the mascarpone cheese, cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla into a large mixing bowl.
• Using an electric mixer whip the cream mixture to soft peaks.
• Fold the crunch mixture into the whipped cream.
• FOR THE TOPPING:.
• Place the chocolate, sugar and zest in a food processor.
• Process the mixture until the chocolate is finely ground.
• ASSEMBLY OF CAKE:.
• Put 1 cake on a serving plate.
• Top with 1-inch of the whipped cream crunch mixture.
• Top with the second layer of cake and continue frosting the entire cake with the remaining whipped cream crunch mixture.
• Sprinkle the top and sides of the cake with the ground chocolate.
• Serve & Enjoy!

CHOCOLATE AND HAZELNUT CRUNCH CAKE

Steps:

• Combine both chocolates and melt them over a double boiler. Whisk the yolks and 1/2 of the sugar in a mixer equipped with a whisk, set aside at room temperature. In a separate bowl, whisk the whipping cream to the soft peak stage and set aside, refrigerated. Combine the 3 egg whites with the remaining sugar and whip to a soft peak stage. Pour the melted chocolate into the yolk and sugar mixture and whip at high speed until the mixture begins to pale and increase in volume. Fold in the whipped egg whites and then the whipped cream until smooth and homogenous. Pour into individual 3-inch diameter plastic round bottom (about 1/2 cup capacity) molds and freeze.
• Combine and melt the Gandujia and the hazelnut paste over a double boiler until smooth. Set aside at room temperature. Add the royaltine chips and the peanut oil and fold into the chocolate mixture until smooth. While the mixture is still warm, spread it on a sheetpan in a 1/2-inch layer, evening the surface with the aid of an offset spatula. Refrigerate until solid and then cut into 3-inch circles and refrigerate. These circles will serve as the base for the mousse cakes.
• Combine both of the ingredients over a double boiler and melt until smooth. Allow to cool to a warm stage and fill a container of an electric spray gun with the mixture. The spray gun should be new or has never been used for any purpose other than food.
• To assemble cakes: Remove the crunchy 3-inch discs from the refrigerator and place on plates. Remove mousse molds and unmold on top of the disc. These should be kept frozen until ready to spray with the chocolate mist. Remove mousse cakes from the freezer and spray the chocolate domes liberally to create a velour type finish, while still frozen. Refrigerate until set. Serve the mousse cakes with chocolate sauce and chocolate decorations of your choice.

RICH HAZELNUT CHOCOLATE CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter and flour a 10-inch springform pan. Place butter and chocolate in a bowl over barely simmering water until melted, stirring often. Whisk egg yolks with 3/4 cup of sugar. Whisk in the chocolate mixture, hazelnuts and liqueur.
• Using an electric mixer, whip the egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually add the remaining sugar and whip to firm peaks. Stir 1/3 of the whites into the chocolate mixture. Fold in the remaining whites. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out slightly moist, about 55 minutes. Let cool; cake will fall. Remove the sides of the pan and sift confectioners' sugar over the top. Cut into wedges and serve.

SWISS CARROT CAKE WITH MASCARPONE ICING

Steps:

• Combine carrots, almonds, breadcrumbs, spices & baking powder in a bowl.
• Beat egg yolks until thick, gradually adding sugar, lemon rind and juice, Beat until thick.
• Stir egg yolk mixture into carrot mixture.
• Beat egg whites until stiff, then fold gently into carrot mixture.(do not over mix).
• Grease 20cm (8") cake tin.
• Pour batter into cake tin, and bake in a moderate oven (180 C)for about an hour, cake tester should come out clean.
• cool in tin for 10min then turn out on a wire rack to cool completely.
• To make icing place butter, cheese and icing sugar in a food processor and beat until smooth. Spread over cooled cake.

DEVIL'S FOOD CAKE WITH HAZELNUT PRALINE

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius (nonfan)/375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line the bottom of 2 (20-centimeter/8-inch) cake pans (tins) with a removable base with parchment paper and grease the sides. Alternatively, grease the bottoms and sides of 2 (20-centimeter/8-inch) regular cake pans, line with parchment, and grease the parchment.
• In a large bowl, whisk together cocoa, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugars. In a separate bowl, add the oil, eggs and kefir, and whisk just to combine. Add to the dry mixture and use a spatula to gently fold through. Add the 3/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons/220 grams hot coffee and mix gently to combine. It'll look very runny at first, but will soon come together into a glossy, pourable batter.
• Divide the batter evenly between the two cake pans, about 21 ounces/600 grams per pan. Bake for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Set aside to cool for about 30 minutes, then slide a butter knife along the sides to help release the cake. Brush the tops lightly with the remaining 1 tablespoon/14 grams extra coffee (discard any extra).
• Invert one cake onto a board, remove the parchment, then invert it again onto a cake stand or the platter you intend to serve it on (domed side up now). Invert the other cake onto a board (don't remove the paper). Invert it again, onto a plate, so that it's paper side down. (This will help prevent it from sticking.) Set both cakes aside to cool completely.
• Make the praline: With the oven still at 200 degrees Celsius/375 degrees Fahrenheit, spread the hazelnuts onto a parchment-lined medium baking sheet (tray) and bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until deeply golden, shaking the pan halfway through baking. Set aside, keeping the tray and parchment paper. You'll use them again later.
• Place a large saucepan over a medium-high heat and, once quite hot, sprinkle in a third of the caster sugar to cover the base. It should immediately start to melt at the sides but not brown too quickly. Swirl the sugar in the pan a little, then add another third of the sugar, allowing it to melt a little before adding the remaining third. Turn the heat down to medium and cook until the sugar is an amber caramel, stirring with a spatula just a couple times (but not much more). Add the hazelnuts and 1/4 teaspoon salt, stirring to coat, then quickly transfer the mixture to your parchment-lined tray and leave to cool completely.
• Once cool, roughly break apart the praline and add it to a food processor. Pulse a few times until you have very coarse crumbs, then measure out about 1/2 cup/75 grams of the mixture and transfer to a bowl. Blitz the remaining mixture in the food processor for about 5 minutes or until it turns into the consistency of a smooth nut butter, stopping to scrape the inside of the bowl as necessary. Transfer this to a separate bowl.
• Make the mascarpone cream: Add all the ingredients to a stand mixer and beat on medium-high speed for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes, or until you have medium peaks. Refrigerate if not assembling right away (you want it nice and cold).
• When ready to assemble, top the cake on your cake stand with half the cream mixture. Spoon over about 2 tablespoons of the smooth praline and gently swirl it through the cream with your spatula. Top with another 2 tablespoons of the praline, this time without swirling. Sprinkle with half the praline crumble. Carefully invert the other cake on top now, removing the paper. Top with the remaining cream and repeat the same process with the smooth praline and praline crumble. Serve right away, or refrigerate overnight to firm up the cream before serving. (The cake will keep refrigerated for up to 3 days.)

CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH MASCARPONE AND PRALINE

Steps:

• Make praline:
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• In a baking pan toast nuts in one layer in middle of oven 10 minutes, or until almonds are lightly colored and hazelnut skins are blistered. Wrap nuts in a kitchen towel and let steam 1 minute. Rub nuts in towel to remove any loose hazelnut skins (do not worry about skins that do not come off) and cool completely.
• Line a baking sheet with foil. In a small heavy saucepan bring sugar and water to a boil, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Boil syrup, without stirring, washing down any sugar crystals that cling to side of pan with a pastry brush dipped in cold water, until it begins to turn golden. Swirl pan until syrup is deep golden and remove from heat. Stir in nuts and pour praline onto baking sheet, spreading evenly. Cool praline completely and break into pieces. Transfer praline to a sealable plastic bag and with a rolling pin coarsely crush.
• Make cake:
• Preheat oven to 300°F. Generously butter a 9-inch round cake pan (at least 2 inches deep) and line bottom with wax or parchment paper. Butter paper and dust pan with flour, knocking out excess.
• Finely chop chocolate. In a small saucepan combine cocoa powder, butter, oil, and water. Bring mixture to a boil, stirring until smooth, and remove pan from heat. Add chocolate and sugar, whisking until smooth, and transfer to a bowl. Cool chocolate mixture completely and whisk in egg. Sift flour and baking powder over chocolate mixture and whisk until just combined. Whisk in buttermilk and pour batter into cake pan, spreading evenly. Bake cake in middle of oven 45 to 50 minutes, or until a tester comes out clean, and cool in pan on a rack 5 minutes. Run a thin knife around edge of pan and invert cake onto rack. Discard paper. Cool cake completely and transfer to a plate. In a bowl stir together mascarpone and sugar. Spread mixture over top of cake and generously sprinkle with praline.

HAZELNUT CRUNCH CAKE WITH MASCARPONE AND CHOCOLATE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter and flour two 8-inch cake pans.
• Prepare the cake mix according to package instructions. Divide the batter between the cake pans and bake as directed. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack.
• To Make the Crunch
• Place the toasted nuts close together in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Combine the granulated sugar and 1/3 cup of water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved. Continue to boil the mixture until the sugar is light brown, about 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and let the bubbles subside, then pour the caramelized sugar over the nuts. Place the baking sheet in the refrigerator and let the nut crunch cool until hard, about 30 minutes. When the nut crunch is hardened and cool, place it on a cutting board and cut into small pieces, saving a few larger ones for decoration. Set aside.
• To Make the Filling
• Put the mascarpone, cream, confectioners' sugar, and vanilla into a large mixing bowl. Using an electric mixer, whip the cream mixture to soft peaks. Fold the chopped nut crunch into the whipped cream.
• To Make the Topping
• Place the chocolate chips, granulated sugar, and zest in a food processor. Process the mixture until the chocolate is finely ground.
• To Assemble the Cake
• Put 1 cake layer on a serving plate or cake stand. Top with a 1-inch layer of the whipped cream-hazelnut crunch filling. Place the second layer of cake on top of the first and frost the entire cake with the remaining filling. Sprinkle the top and sides of the cake with the ground chocolate topping and add some shards of nut crunch as decoration. Serve.