To celebrate an office birthday, I decided to make Tish Boyle's Tiramisu Cake from The Cake Book. I love making layer cakes in general, and I always jump at the chance to use a cake ring to make a molded cake -- I eagerly anticipate that moment when you cut into the cake and get to see the inside for the first time.
This cake is two layers of génoise, brushed with espresso syrup, layered with mascarpone cream, and dusted with cocoa. To make the cake, you whisk eggs and sugar in a bowl set over simmering water until the eggs are warm; transfer the bowl to a mixer and whisk until tripled in volume; beat in lemon zest and vanilla; and fold in cake flour sifted with salt, and melted butter.
My génoise technique needs some work, because I screwed up the cake twice (unfortunately, this is not the first time this has happened to me -- a few years ago when I tried to make génoise for a birthday cake, it took me three tries). Both times my cakes didn't rise much, but after the second time I didn't have the energy for another attempt, so I just went with it.
To make the mascarpone cream, you start out by whisking together egg yolks, sugar, and water in a bowl over simmering water until the eggs are hot and thickened. You cool the mixture completely and then beat it into mascarpone cheese, followed by gelatin dissolved in rum. Finally, you fold in heavy cream beaten to soft peaks.
I baked two separate layers of génoise, so there as no splitting required before assembling the cake. Not only were my cake layers short, but the bottoms of the cakes were quite rubbery. You are supposed to brush both the top and bottom of each cake layer with espresso syrup (espresso, sugar, and vanilla), but the rubbery bottoms were impenetrable, even when I tried poking holes with a toothpick first. So I laid one cake layer inside a cake ring, brushed it with syrup, spread mascarpone cream on top, and then followed with the second cake layer, more syrup, and more cream. After an overnight chill, I unmolded the cake and sprinkled cocoa powder on top.
I thought the cake looked great when I sliced it. Because the espresso syrup was so dark, you could see it soaked into the cake layers -- but this didn't bother me at all because of course the same thing happens with actual tiramisu. I thought this cake was quite delicious. It is just like eating tiramisu in cake form. I was paying attention and could tell that something was amiss with the bottom of the cake layers, but I don't think that my other tasters noticed. If my génoise had been springier, the cake would have been perfect. But even with my second rate cake, the finished product was pretty fantastic.
Recipe: "Tiramisu Cake" from The Cake Book by Tish Boyle.
This cake is two layers of génoise, brushed with espresso syrup, layered with mascarpone cream, and dusted with cocoa. To make the cake, you whisk eggs and sugar in a bowl set over simmering water until the eggs are warm; transfer the bowl to a mixer and whisk until tripled in volume; beat in lemon zest and vanilla; and fold in cake flour sifted with salt, and melted butter.
My génoise technique needs some work, because I screwed up the cake twice (unfortunately, this is not the first time this has happened to me -- a few years ago when I tried to make génoise for a birthday cake, it took me three tries). Both times my cakes didn't rise much, but after the second time I didn't have the energy for another attempt, so I just went with it.
To make the mascarpone cream, you start out by whisking together egg yolks, sugar, and water in a bowl over simmering water until the eggs are hot and thickened. You cool the mixture completely and then beat it into mascarpone cheese, followed by gelatin dissolved in rum. Finally, you fold in heavy cream beaten to soft peaks.
I baked two separate layers of génoise, so there as no splitting required before assembling the cake. Not only were my cake layers short, but the bottoms of the cakes were quite rubbery. You are supposed to brush both the top and bottom of each cake layer with espresso syrup (espresso, sugar, and vanilla), but the rubbery bottoms were impenetrable, even when I tried poking holes with a toothpick first. So I laid one cake layer inside a cake ring, brushed it with syrup, spread mascarpone cream on top, and then followed with the second cake layer, more syrup, and more cream. After an overnight chill, I unmolded the cake and sprinkled cocoa powder on top.
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