John Whaites Chocolate Chiffon Cake With Salted Caramel Butter Cream Food

JOHN WHAITE'S CHOCOLATE CHIFFON CAKE WITH SALTED CARAMEL BUTTER CREAM

Steps:

• Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Grease and line a 25cm round deep cake tin with baking parchment. In a large bowl, mix the oil, egg yolks, vanilla paste, caster sugar and 200ml water until well combined. Sift in the cocoa powder and whisk until smooth.
• Sift in the flour, bicarb and 1 tsp salt. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites to stiff peaks. Fold into the batter with a large metal spoon and mix until everything is well combined.
• Gently pour the mixture into your cake tin, then bang it on the work surface twice to expel any large air pockets. Bake for 1 hr 10 mins or until the cake springs back when gently prodded and an inserted skewer comes out clean. (Cover with foil after 1 hr if the cake starts to get too dark.) Remove from the oven, cool in the tin for 10 mins, then transfer to a large wire rack and peel off the parchment. Leave until the cake is completely cool.
• Make the salted caramel icing while the cake bakes. Heat the brown sugar, ½ tsp salt and cream in a saucepan until the sugar has dissolved. Bubble for a few mins, then leave to cool completely. Beat the butter until smooth, pour in the cooled cream mixture and continue mixing until softly whipped. Chill until needed.
• To make the ganache, heat the cream until just boiling. Remove from the heat and pour over the chocolate. Leave to stand for a few mins until the chocolate has melted and you have a smooth sauce consistency. Leave to cool at room temperature until the ganache is a pipeable thickness, then transfer to a piping bag fitted with a star nozzle. To finish the cake, slice in half and fill with the salted caramel buttercream. Pipe tall spikes of chocolate ganache on top and decorate with the sea salt crystals. Will keep for up to 2 days in a cool place.

CARAMEL CHIFFON CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter two 8-inch round cake pans. Line with parchment; butter parchment. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, 1/2 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together oil, egg yolks, milk, and vanilla seeds. Whisk egg-yolk mixture into flour mixture.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites on high speed until frothy. Add cream of tartar and beat until soft peaks form. Gradually add remaining 1/2 cup sugar, beating until stiff, glossy peaks form, about 5 minutes. Whisk one-third of egg-white mixture into batter. Gently but thoroughly fold in remaining egg-white mixture with a rubber spatula. Transfer batter to prepared pans. Bake until tops spring back when lightly touched, about 25 to 30 minutes. Run a knife around edges of pans. Invert cakes onto a wire rack; remove parchment. Let cool completely, upside-down.
• Using a serrated knife, split each cake horizontally into three equal layers. Place a cake layer on a cake stand or turn table. Spread 3/4 cup buttercream evenly over it, then sprinkle with 1/4 cup malted milk balls. Repeat with remaining 5 cake layers. Spread remaining buttercream over top and sides of cake. Decorate with more malted milk balls, caramel dots, and chocolate curls, if desired.

CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH SALTED CARAMEL AND WHITE CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM

Steps:

• Preheat a convection oven to 350 degrees F. Whisk the vinegar into the milk in a medium bowl and set it aside to curdle for 5 minutes.
• Add the granulated sugar, oil and vanilla to the milk mixture and beat by hand with a whisk until foamy.
• Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients in 2 batches, beating with an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment until no lumps.
• Grease three 6-inch cake pans with nonstick cooking spray. Divide the batter among them and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean, about 20 minutes
• Let cool slightly, then remove the cakes from the pans. Cool the cakes in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Soak the cake rounds with Coffee Simple Syrup by brushing about 1/3 cup onto each layer as you build the cake. To build: Spread the White Chocolate Buttercream on one soaked cake round, then add a heavy drizzle of Caramel Sauce. Add a second layer and repeat. Add the last layer and frost the whole cake with White Chocolate Buttercream.
• Add the sugar to a small saucepan fitted with a lid. Pour in the coffee and stir. Bring the mixture to a rolling boil over medium heat, stirring constantly, until sugar completely dissolves. Turn off the heat. Cover immediately and let cool for 15 minutes.
• Put the white chocolate chips in a metal bowl. Bring the granulated sugar and 3 cups water to a boil in a large saucepan. Reduce the heat. Mix the cornstarch with 1 cup of water in a small bowl to combine. Stir it into the sugar mixture. Bring to a boil. Pour the sugar mixture over the white chocolate. Stir by hand with a whisk to combine. As mixture cools, stir 2 more times over the next 40 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.
• Transfer to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, add the butter and vanilla and mix until light and fluffy.
• Combine the light brown sugar, butter, evaporated milk, vanilla and salt in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until thickened.