chocolate cake

Baking is relatively new territory for me. I kind of threw in the towel a few years ago; a couple botched batches of muffins and a failed attempt at Mark Bittman's no knead bread (my results were sticky compacted concrete) were signals from the universe that maybe, just maybe, I should channel my culinary energies into cooking instead. So I did. Cooking just feels more natural to me. It is an art, after all, while baking is a science. And I've always gravitated towards the arts.

But this past winter, I decided to step up to the plate. I wanted to go top shelf and bake a fancy French chocolate cake. The sort of a gateau that you would find behind the shimmering glass display cases at Gérard Mulot in Paris. And the man I turned to for help? Why, Jacques Pepin, of course - the godfather of technique! Jacques Pepin's New Complete Techniques contains just the recipe I was looking for. Well, "recipe" is kind of misnomer, because four separate recipes go into this gateau. 

This recipe starts with two 8-inch basic sponge cakes. The sponge cake is moist and delicious and it is a solid jumping point for multiple dessert variations in French cuisine. The tricky part is slicing each cake into three horizontal layers (step 10). Running a bread knife through the cake to produce evenly-cut layers is no easy feat, so take your time with it, and keep a close eye on the knife to ensure it's parallel with your work surface as you run it through the cake. And I do suggest blocking off a weekend afternoon to bake this bad boy, because it is involved. But totally worth it. Bon appetit!

recipe 

for the sponge cake:

• 6 large brown eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup cake flour
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted

for the ganache soufflé:

• 8 ounces chocolate, equal parts bitter and semisweet, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tbsp dark rum

for the chocolate ganache:

• 12 ounces good chocolate, equal parts bitter and semisweet
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 2 to 3 tbsp water (optional)

for the glace royale:

• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1 1/2 tbsp egg white
• 3 to 4 drops fresh lemon juice

1. Have the dry ingredients measured out and ready to go. Preheat the oven to 350° and butter two 8-inch cake pans. Dust each pan lightly with flour.
2. Add the sugar, eggs and vanilla extract to the bowl of an electric stand mixture and beat until the ingredients are well-combined.
3. Place the bowl over the burner for about 30-45 seconds and stir until the mixture is lukewarm. Return bowl to the electric mixture and beat for 10 minutes on medium-high speed.
4. Sift the all-purpose and cake flours into the cake batter while continuously folding the batter with a large spatula. You'll want to gradually sift in the flour and fold to evenly incorporate it before sifting more. This technique will prevent lumps from forming in the batter.
5. Use the same method to fold in the butter.
6. Pour the batter into the cake pans. The pans should be about three quarters full. Transfer the cake pans to a large cookie sheet. Bake for 22-25 minutes.
7. When the cakes have finished baking, remove them from the oven allow to cool for 10 minutes. Unmold the cakes onto a wire rack. The cakes should slide right out of the pans.
8. If you wish to make the sponge cakes in advance, then you may wrap and refrigerate them for up to three days.
9. Make a base for each cake by cutting out two pieces of cardboard. The bases should be the same size as the bottom of the cake pan. Wipe the cardboard bases with a damp cloth.
10. Slice each cake into three horizontal layers using a big serrated knife. Set aside.
11. To make the chocolate ganache soufflé, bring 1 cup of heavy cream to a boil in a medium saucepan. When the cream starts boiling, remove from heat an add the chocolate. Allow the chocolate to melt for several minutes, then stir until smooth. Pour in the rum and stir vigorously for several minutes. 
12. Put one of the cake layers on the cardboard base and use a cake spatula to spread the layer with the ganache soufflé. Add another layer and spread with more of the soufflé. Spread the soufflé onto the third and final layer of cake.
13. Rest the cake in the palm of one hand and spread the sides with ganache soufflé using your other hand. All surfaces (except the bottom) of the bake should be evenly, smoothly coated with the souffle. Repeat steps 12 and 13 with the second cake.
14. Place the cakes in the refrigerator or at minimum of 1 hour. Proceed with the chocolate ganache (glossy chocolate icing) and the glace royale (white icing).
15. In a small saucepan, bring the heavy cream to a boil and remove from heat. Immediately add the chocolate and allow it to melt for several minutes. Stir with a whisk until smooth. Allow the mixture to cool until slightly tepid. Stir in the optional 2-3 tbsp water if the mixture seems oily. 
16. For the glace royale, put the egg white, sugar and lemon juice in a bowl and blend the mixture for a few minutes using a wooden spoon. Make sure the ingredients are evenly-incorporated.
17. Place a wire rack on a sheet of parchment paper and place one of the cakes on the rack. Pour half of the chocolate ganache onto the cake and, working quickly, spread the ganache over the top and sides of the cake using a long spatula. Make sure the cake is evenly coated. Run the spatula along the bottom of the wire rack to remove excess chocolate. Repeat step 16 with the second cake.
18. Spoon the glace royale into a pastry bag. Apply a straight line of glace royale across the middle of the cake, like drawing a straight line through the middle of a circle. Apply more parallel lines of the icing, spacing each one about 1 inch apart. 
19. Rotate the cake by 90°. Drag a long sharp knife across the top of the cake. Be sure you don't cut the cake - the knife should barely make contact with the chocolate. Wipe the blade clean with a damp cloth and create more parallel lines - they should be about 1.5 inches apart from each other. Repeat steps 18 and 19 with the second cake.
20. After you've applied the ganache royale, allow the cakes to cool in the refrigerator before serving.

If you make this recipe, hashtag a pic to #spiceandhutch and post to Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. I'd love to see your culinary creations!

rhubarb tart

The abundance of rhubarb desserts on Instagram inspired me to bake several tarts of my own. I almost forgot we're in the height of rhubarb season! It only lasts from April to June, so I made a dash to Whole Foods to fetch a bundle of stalks and start creating. 

Rhubarb is a species of plant - but treated as a fruit in the kitchen - with kite-sized leaves and greenish magenta-colored stalks. The stalks are firm, sour and edible, and like gooseberries, rhubarb produces a delightfully sweet and tart flavor when paired with a big dose of sugar. Since rhubarb holds a ton of water, I added a generous dollop of tapioca to absorb the water and avoid having a soupy mess on my hands. I suggest using lots of tapioca when baking rhubarb tarts, pies and crumbles. You will thank me later.

Rhubarb has been cultivated in Western Europe for several hundred years. It made its debut in the United States in the early 19th century and it's been a summertime staple in my life for as long as I can remember - my parents cultivated a large rhubarb patch when I was a kid, and on warm summer days I used to carry armloads of leafy stalks from the garden to the kitchen to help make strawberry rhubarb pies and jams. Yummy! 

recipe

for the tart shell:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup bleached cake flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 6 ounces chilled unsalted butter, diced
• 1/4 cup chilled vegetable shortening
• 1/2 cup ice water

for the filling & glaze:

• 5 cups rhubarb stalks, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1 cup strawberry jam
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup quick cooking tapioca
• zest of half a lemon

1. Combine the flour, salt, sugar and diced butter in a food processor. Pulse about 5-7 times.
2. Add the vegetable shortening. Turn on the food processor and with the motor running, add the 1/2 cup of water right away, then turn it off. The butter and shortening should look like small peas by now. Pulse 2-3 more times if necessary to break up the butter into pea-sized clumps. Be sure you don't overmix!
3. Transfer the pastry dough to a lightly floured work surface. Working quickly, form the dough into a rough ball and then slice it in half with a butter knife. Form each portion of dough into a flat disk. Wrap each disk tightly in plastic wrap and put them in a Ziplock bag. Refrigerate for a minimum of two hours to firm up the butter.
4. To form the tart shell, quickly roll out one of the chilled disks on a lightly floured pastry marble or work surface. The dough should about about two inches larger than the diameter of your tart pan.
5. Use a pastry cutter to loosen the dough from your work surface, then drape it over the tart pan. Gently press the dough onto the bottom and sides of the tart pan, ensuring it has a solid rim standing half an inch higher than the top of the pan.
6. Trim any excess dough that may be hanging over the sides of the pan. Use it to patch up the tart shell, if needed. Then, using a fork, prick the bottom of the tart shell until it is speckled with small holes.
7. Now, to make sure the tart shell maintains its structural integrity during the prebake, you'll need to weigh it down. Tear off a sheet of aluminum foil and fold it into a square (it should be a few inches larger than the circumference of the pan). Butter one side of the foil and place it in the tart shell, butter-side down, then fill it with dried kidney beans (this is called a foil pouch).
8. Adjust oven rack to middle part of oven and preheat to 450°. Bake the tart shell for 15 minutes, then remove the pouch and bake for several minutes longer until the shell has achieved a pale golden hue. Transfer to a wire rack to allow the shell to cool for at 15 minutes before adding the filling.
9. Preheat the oven to 375°.
10. To make the glaze, rub the strawberry jam through a fine mesh strainer into a small saucepan. Add 3 tbsp of the sugar and stir to combine. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce heat to low and simmer gently for several minutes until sugar has dissolved.
11. Remove the glaze from heat and stir in the tapioca. Set aside.
12. Sprinkle the bottom of the tart shell with 2 tbsp of the sugar, then place the rhubarb pieces in the tart shell, one by one, to form a single layer. You can arrange the rhubarb in any pattern you like. 
13. Brush the rhubarb with the glaze. Use a small spoon to fill in any "cracks" (i.e., tiny bits of space between pieces of rhubarb) with the strawberry glaze, if needed.
14. Sprinkle the lemon zest and remaining sugar over the rhubarb. 
15. Bake at 375° for 30 minutes or until the crust has browned lightly. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before serving.

If you make this recipe, hashtag a pic to #spiceandhutch and post to Instagram, Facebook and/or Twitter. I'd love to see your culinary creations!