Rachel’s Esterházy Torte
Bake some noise - it’s Cake Week! Rachel’s decadent Esterházy Torte put contestants (and Smeg’s Stand Mixers!) to the test for their first technical bake.
Watch the new season of Foxtel Original series The Great Australian Bake Off Tuesdays 7:30pm on LifeStyle or on demand.
COOKING TIME: 2:15 hours
INGREDIENTS
Hazelnut Dacquoise
9 large egg whites, room temperature
190g caster sugar
20g vanilla sugar
190g hazelnut meal
25g cocoa powder
25g plain flour
Hazelnut Cream
9 large egg yolks
190g caster sugar
20g vanilla sugar
225g butter, softened
120g hazelnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped
White Icing
250g pure icing sugar, sifted
1 tbsp sunflower oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 – 1.5 tbsp boiling water
Chocolate Decoration
25g dark 70% chocolate
1 tsp sunflower oil
100g hazelnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped
METHOD
1. Preheat the oven to 160°C.
2. Line 3 baking trays with baking paper and use a 20cm cake ring to draw 2 x 20cm diameter circles on each sheet, making a total of 6 circles.
3. For the hazelnut dacquoise, whisk the egg whites in a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, gradually adding the caster sugar and vanilla sugar over 5 minutes, until stiff peaks form.
4. In a separate bowl, sift together cocoa powder and plain flour combine with hazelnut meal. Gently fold into the egg white mixture evenly.
5. Spoon 1/6 of the mixture onto each drawn circle and smooth out to the edge of the circles with a palette knife.
6. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes. Each layer should be soft but set. Set aside to cool.
7. For the hazelnut cream: Whisk the egg yolks and both sugars in a bowl and place bowl over a pot of simmering water. (double boiler method). (ensuring the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water). Cook, whisking until mixture has thickened and forms thick ribbons, or has reached approx 68 – 70C. Set aside to cool until room temperature, whisking occasionally.
8. In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat softened butter on medium high speed for 2 minutes until light and fluffy. Reduce speed and gradually add the cooled yolk mixture, continue to mix until fully incorporated. Gently, fold in the hazelnuts, by hand. Set aside ½ cup of hazelnut cream for outside of the torte. Divide the remaining cream into 5 equal portions.
9. To assemble the torte, carefully peel baking paper from one dacquoise disc and place in the centre of the presentation plate, spread 1/5 of hazelnut cream evenly. Repeat with remaining discs, leaving the top layer bare. Place a piece of baking paper over top layer of dacquoise, firmly press down evenly, place cake board and weight on top and refrigerate for 20 minutes to set.
10. Toast hazelnuts in oven until golden brown. Coarsely chop and set aside.
11. For the chocolate feathering, melt dark chocolate with oil and transfer to small piping bag.
12. Remove torte from fridge and apply remaining hazelnut cream evenly around the outside of the torte, leaving the top bare.
13. For the white icing, in a bowl, using a spatula, mix icing sugar, sunflower oil, lemon juice and gradually add enough hot water for a spreadable consistency. (not too runny/loose).
14. Quickly spread the white icing over the top of the torte using a hot, wet palette knife.
15. Snip end of piping bag with the dark chocolate. Starting from the centre of the torte, pipe chocolate in a continuous spiral outward, resembling a snail shell. Ensure the spiral is evenly spaced as you move towards the outer edge of the torte.
16. Create feathered pattern, using a skewer or the tip of a knife, begin at the centre of the torte. Lightly drag the skewer through the icing, in a straight line, from the centre to the edge of the torte. Beside the first line (approx 1cm across), drag the skewer, in a straight line, from the outer edge back to the centre. Repeat this process, alternating the direction each time (from centre to edge, then from edge back to centre), creating an evenly spaced, feathered or web-like pattern across the surface of the torte (approx 20-24 lines).
17. Neatly add chopped hazelnuts around the outside edge of the torte tidy presentation plate and serve.
