Ukrainian Great Grandmas Prune Torte Food

UKRAINIAN PRUNE TORTE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour 5 (8 inch) round pans.
• Grind the blanched almonds in a food processor with 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar. Cream the butter with the remaining 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg. Stir in the almond extract, salt, and ground almond mixture. Add the flour and mix thoroughly. Divide the dough into 5 equal parts. Roll each piece between 2 sheets of waxed paper or parchment paper to fit the pans, or pat each piece of dough into the prepared pans.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the edges begin to brown, about 20 minutes. Remove from the pans while still hot.
• To make the Prune Filling: Place the prunes in a saucepan with the water. Bring to a boil, remove from heat and let stand for 10 minutes. Drain and reserve the liquid. Puree the prunes in a food processor.
• Return the prune puree to the saucepan and add the white sugar, cinnamon, lemon juice and 4 tablespoons reserved prune liquid. Bring the mixture to a boil, then remove from heat. Assemble the torte layers, spreading them with warm prune filling. Let stand for 24 hours before slicing.

UKRAINIAN GREAT GRANDMA'S PRUNE TORTE

Steps:

• Use vegetable spray to butter 5 round layer cake pans (8-inch pans) and dust with flour, remove excess.
• Cream the butter with the sugar until light. Add the egg and beat well. Stir in the extract, salt, and almonds. Add the flour and mix thoroughly. Divide the dough into 5 equal parts. Put in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
• Roll each of them between 2 sheets of waxed or parchment paper to fit the pan, or pat the dough evenly into the pans gently. Bake in a moderate oven 325 to 350°F for 20 minutes, or until delicately browned. Reduce temperature if it starts to get too brown. Remove from the pans while still hot. Cool. Prepare the filling.
• FOR THE FILLING: Cook the prunes in water just to cover until they plump up. Take prunes out of the liquid, pit them and grind them.
• Bring to the boiling point the ground prunes with the 1 cup sugar, cinnamon, lemon juice and prune liquid. Put the layers together with the warm filling. Let the torte stand for about a day (24 hours) before cutting it. Serve in slices.

UKRAINIAN KYIVSKY TORTE

Steps:

• Beat the 12 egg Yolks until light and beat in the sugar gradually (a tablespoon at a time).
• Beat until lemon colored, light and fluffy.
• Fold in the bread crumbs and the nuts.
• Beat the 12 egg whites until stiff.
• Lighten the nut mixture with a bit of the egg whites and then genly fold into the mixture the rest of the whites.
• Butter 2 deep layer pans 9 or 10 inch springform pans (shallow pans may cause the batter to run over in the oven) with soft butter and sprinkle with fine bread crumbs.
• Regular pans can be used, in this case use parchment paper for the bottom of pan and grease the paper also.
• Bake in a 325 F.
• oven for about 30--35 minutes.
• Test cake with a toothpick in the centre of the cake, if it comes out clean the cake is done.
• Cool for 10 minutes and gently with a knife go around the cake to loosen and gently invert and place on a cake rack.
• Fill and frost the cake with the filling.
• If you wish more layers cut each cake in half and fill so that you will have 4 layers.
• FOR THE BUTTERCREAM FILLING AND ICING: Over simmering water in a double boiler add 1 cup HOT strong coffee and add the chocolate, mixing well to melt.
• In a separate bowl-- Beat the 5 egg yolks until light and set aside.
• Blend 2 1/2 Tablespoons of the flour in the remaining 1/2 cup COLD coffee and blend well until smooth and free of any lumps.
• Add the flour mixture to the whipped egg yolks and mix well.
• Add this mixture whisking quickly to the melted chocolate (in the double boiler) and cook until thickens stirring frequently for about 10 minutes.
• When mixture has thickened set it aside to COOL.
• Beat 1 cup unsalted butter with the 1 cup of sugar until light and fluffy and gradually beat in the cold chocolate pudding mixture little at a time into the butter and beat until fluffy.

VINETERTA

Steps:

• First, prepare the prune filling (this can be done way ahead of time):
• Cover 20-24 ounces of pitted prunes with boiling water in a saucepan.
• Once the prunes are softened, drain the water and put it aside for later.
• Puree prunes in a food processor and put them back into the saucepan.
• Add half cup of the reserved prune water to the puree and bring it to a boil over medium heat. Mix in 1 cup sugar and 2 tspn cinnamon.
• Boil off excess water until the mixture has the texture of jam (we will be spreading it). If the mixture is too thick, add in more reserved prune water.
• Remove from heat.
• Mix in 1 tspn vanilla extract.
• Set aside to cool.
• Next we do the second major section, preparing the layers:.
• Mix the following wet ingredients together in a mixer: 1 cup butter, 1.5 cups sugar, 2 eggs, 1 tspn almond extract, 2 tbsp light cream.
• Mix dry ingredients in another mixing bowl: 4 cups flour, 1 pinch of salt, 1 tspn baking powder, 1/2 cup ground almonds (optional), 1 tspn cardamom (optional).
• Add dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix well in the mixer.
• Remove the doughy mixture from the mixer and knead it around 10 times on countertop until it binds together. You will barely need to knead this, as it is not leavened.
• Chill dough for 20 minutes in refrigerator.
• Spread the dough into six 9" ungreased circular pans with palms until spread evenly across the bottom. If you don not have 6 pans, you can repeat this process 6 times with 1 pan, it will just take longer (or 3 times with 2 pans, et cetera).
• Bake at 350F for 20 minutes. (Jump ahead and do the icing if you are impatient.).
• Pop the layers out of the pans and cool on cooling racks.
• When all 6 layers are complete, assemble layers and prune filling by starting with a layer for the bottom. Spread on 1/5th of your filling onto the base layer, then add another layer cake, add another 1/5th - etc. repeat until your vineterta is complete.
• Prepare your icing by mixing the following with a beater in a mixing bowl: 3 tbsp softened butter, 3/4 cup powdered icing sugar, 2 tspn light cream, 1/4 cup ground almonds (optional), 1/8 tspn almond extract.
• Spread the icing on top of the vineterta.
• Decorate with icing with the sliced almonds.
• Chill everything and let it set.
• This torte may be kept in the fridge for extended length of time and is better for having been "aged" in the fridge for at least a couple of weeks to a month.
• When serving slice into small rectangular pieces (about 2" by 1", or smaller) and serve cold.