I was dreaming about this moment. When I would be able to enjoy the simpleness in doing very little things and not worrying about small details. Last Thursday I submitted my thesis to University of Luzern and felt like 10kg of worries suddenly came off of me. Even though it might not be perfect (I hate that I have this perfectionism gene), it is handed in and ready for someone to appraise. It has left me. Almost...until the oral defence, but hey the oversized amount of anxiety has disappeared. In addition, the sun has come out and finally we can call this season "Spring".
A celebration of the season along with the celebration of thesis submission was in order. What better way to achieve a joyous smile on your face than a 4-layer cake filled with love and...creaminess. A feast for the eyes and mouth. The process of making such a cake feels very creative and soul healing, so I would suggest if you're going through a rough phase or you just want to "chill the f**k out", try meditating by covering a cake with creamy buttercream. I tell you, no better instant upgrade to your mood that this! At least, if you enjoy cakes like I do...
My inspiration for this cake was of course, Spring. It couldn't come at a better time, with the end of an era the beginning of something else comes. Layer cakes are my favourite to admire more than to eat, but only because of how pretty they are. Flavour-wise they can be so versatile to what you can incorporate and mix. I am a big fan of nuts of any kind and of course chocolate cake is one of my favourites. When the idea came to my mind I knew instantly that it would be a success, at least in taste!
The hazelnut cake I have to say was a difficult task. I browsed around for some interesting recipes that I could use and adjust a little bit to my taste. I am a believer of adding vegetable oil to cakes as it makes them softer and lighter. Finally, I had the ingredients for a wonderful and light hazelnut cake, which of course can be used in other cakes as well. The chocolate cake on the other hand I used a very simple, but oh so perfect recipe for soft and crumbly cake. It can also be used in other recipes as well, one comes to mind... cakepops! I don't need to say something about salted caramel. Start drooling already!
Hazelnut and Chocolate layer Cake with Salted Caramel and Whipped Vanilla Buttercream
ingredients (for a cake that serves up to 10 people)
Hazelnut cake (adapted by Vanilla Bean Blog)
2 1/2 cups ground hazelnuts
1/2 cup flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
4 eggs
1/4 cup olive oil
1 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla or hazelnut extract (liquid)
Chocolate cake
2 1/4 cups flour
1 cup white sugar
3 tablespoons Dutch processed cocoa powder or plain cocoa powder (unsweetened)
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg
1 cup milk
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Salted caramel*
2 cans of sweetened condensed milk
salt
Patisserie créme (you make a big batch and keep it for other desserts, for example "profiteroles") (adapted from "Comfort Food" by Jamie Oliver)
250ml full fat milk
200ml heavy cream
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
75gr icing sugar
30gr cornflour
500ml heavy cream (whipped)
Whipped vanilla buttercream
150gr butter (room temperature)
300gr icing sugar (shifted)
7 tablespoons patisserie créme
1 teaspoon vanilla
How do I make it?
* Salted Caramel (day before)
It's best to start making this the day before making the cake. Take a medium pot and fill it with water. Then, without opening the cans of condensed milk, put them inside the water. The cans need to be covered. Turn the heat to high in the beginning until you get a boil and then to medium. The milk needs to be boiled (and turned into caramel heaven) for 3 hours at least.
Important Note! Don't leave the cans to boil on its own for 3 hours. You have to refill the pot with some water during this process. It's best to start doing this when you have time to stay at home for the wanted time.
When 3 hours have passed, carefully take the cans out of the pot and let them cool down for 1 hour. Then, open them, again carefully and you will find the caramel inside. Pour the caramel into a bowl and add a pinch (or more) of salt, while mixing. You will need to taste this for saltiness. After all, some like it salted some like it...not so salted! Keep it in the bowl covered in room temperature for the next day. Bonus: You might have some leftover salted caramel in the end!
Next (whole) Day a.k.a. "Cake Day"
1. Start with the cakes. Prepare two round tins with detachable sides and preheat the oven to 175C. First, make the hazelnut cake. In a big bowl put the ground hazelnuts, flour, baking powder and salt. Then, in another bowl (preferably of a standing mixer) put the oil, sugar, vanilla/hazelnut extract and one by one the eggs, while mixing in medium speed to make sure the eggs are well incorporated. When you're done, start adding the dry mixture into the wet until you get a good final mixture. You will have a somewhat liquid mixture. Pour it into one of the prepared tins. Bake the cake for up to 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. When done, take out of the oven and let it cool completely.
2. While baking the hazelnut cake, we will make the mixture for the chocolate cake and the patisserie creme. For the cake, in a bowl add the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Then pour inside the egg, milk and vanilla extract and mix well for a minute or two. Pour in at last the boiling water and mix again until you get a good mixture. Transfer into the second prepared pan and bake for up to 50 minutes. This cake might rise a lot, but it's what we want, don't be scared (mine arose enormously). When ready, take it out of the oven and let it cool completely.
For the patisserie créme, pour the milk, the vanilla extract and the heavy cream (not whipped) into a medium sized pot. Mix with a wooden spoon and let them get heated for 5 minutes. While the mixture is heating, in another bowl beat together the eggs, sugar and cornflour. When 5 minutes have passed, take the pot and little by little start adding the warm milk mixture into the egg mixture carefully, while whisking well with a whisker (fouet). When you're done, transfer again the cream into the pot and warm it a bit for 2 minutes while whisking. Take out from the heat and let it cool. The cooling process might take a while. If you don't have a ready whipped cream, I would suggest you start whipping 500ml of heavy cream and then keep it in the fridge until the patisserie creme is cold. When the creme has cooled completely add the whipped cream carefully and in small doses into the cream, while mixing with a spatula or a wooden spoon. Keep in fridge for later.
3. Next step is the whipped buttercream. I would recommend start doing this after the patisserie créme has been in the fridge for at least 2 hours. By this time also your cakes will be completely cool, so it's not as much as it seems. Layer cakes are best done, when everything is cool, so there are no runny sides. To make the buttercream, start by placing the butter in a bowl and beating it for at least 5 minutes until it gets an almost white colour. Then, start adding the icing sugar (important: shift it) into the butter and mixing well after each addition. When you're done, add the vanilla extract and mix again. Finally, add 7 tablespoons of pre-made patisserie créme. I added every tablespoon separately, because I didn't want my buttercream to spoil. If you're an experienced baker you know how frustrating that is. I advice you to also add the créme tablespoon by tablespoon. When done, leave to the side.
4. Assembly of the cake:
For this, trim your cakes on the top if they have a pointy top. Then, place them on a flat big pan and cut each cake into half. I also trimmed the sides a bit because I wanted it to fit into my cake platter**. You don't have to do this if you are not putting it on a smaller platter. The more cake the better! Start assembling the cake with the following order I provide. For the last cake layer, make sure to use the bottom half of the chocolate cake and also that the top is the bottom of the baked cake, in order to have a flat surface for the frosting.
Order of cakes and layers:
1. Hazelnut cake
2. Salted caramel
3. Chocolate cake
4. Patisserie créme
5. Hazelnut cake
6. Salted caramel
7. Chocolate cake
Don't be scared with the layers and add as much of the créme or salted caramel you wish. Perhaps, salted caramel not so much as it is a bit filling and too much sometimes.
When you are done with the assembly of layers, start getting creative with the frosting. Now, there are no limits here. If you like experiencing or you already know some tricks, you can try doing different shapes by using a frosting bag and cone. Or, do a simple smooth frosting like I did. You will need a frosting spatula for this or you can be creative and do it messy. I added some flowers on top to make it beautiful, but it's up to you what you do with the cake!
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