Continuing my journey though the almond desserts in Scandilicious Baking, I tried Signe Johansen's recipe for Fyrstekake -- a Norwegian spiced almond tart also known as prince's cake. The "spice" in this cake is cardamom, which happens to be an ingredient I don't particularly like. So I followed the suggestion in the recipe headnote to leave out the cardamom to make a simple almond-vanilla tart filling instead (Johansen also suggests cinnamon or citrus zest as alternatives to cardamom).
You can make the crust by hand, in a mixer, or in a food processor. I found the list of ingredients and directions a bit strange -- the recipe directs you to mix the softened butter and sugar first, followed by the other dry ingredients, and finally cream and an egg yolk. I deviated from the instructions to follow the usual procedure for making pastry in the food processor. First I combined all of the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt), followed by cold butter, and finally the egg yolk and cream. I divided the dough into two parts and put them in the fridge to chill.
I was also confused by the instructions for the filling. You are supposed to combine powdered sugar, ground almonds, vanilla, salt, and melted butter in a bowl, and then fold in egg whites beaten to stiff peaks, to "create a light mousse." The problem is, the recipe calls for a relatively large quantity of powdered sugar and ground almonds (200g each) and only 50 g of melted butter and one teaspoon of vanilla. When I mixed those ingredients together with the salt, I got a pile of clumps the size of small pebbles. Then when I folded in the beaten egg whites, I ended up with a dry, fairly stiff paste that didn't resemble a "light mousse" in the slightest.
I had to work hard with an offset spatula to try to spread the filling into the unbaked crust that I had rolled from one portion of the crust dough. I used the remaining dough to cut lattice strips that I laid on top of the filling. I brushed the top crust with beaten egg yolk, put the tart in the oven, crossed my fingers, and hoped for the best.
Thankfully, the tart looked great when it came out of the oven. The crust contains a lot of leavening (two teaspoons of baking powder), and I was surprised at how much the crust expanded during baking. I had rolled it quite thin, but the crust of the finished tart was thick, and the lattice strips on top rose significantly. The tart released from the pan without a problem, and I dusted it with powdered sugar before slicing.
The interior of the filling ended up basically the same color as the crust, so you had to look closely at a slice to tell that it was a filled tart and not just a homogeneous piece of cake. To me, the tart actually seemed like a cross between a tart and a cake -- the texture of the crust and filling were similar. The almond flavor was lovely and delicious.
My tasters loved the tart and my husband liked it so much that a few days later he asked me to make another one for him to take to a client meeting. Tom very rarely makes requests like that, so this tart definitely made an impression on him. The tart didn't bowl me over, but it was beautiful and a real crowd pleaser. After having some serious doubts about this recipe when my filling came out so thick and heavy, I was pleased as punch with the way it all turned out.
Recipe: "Fyrstekake - Norwegian Spiced Almond Tart" from Scandilicious Baking by Signe Johansen.
You can make the crust by hand, in a mixer, or in a food processor. I found the list of ingredients and directions a bit strange -- the recipe directs you to mix the softened butter and sugar first, followed by the other dry ingredients, and finally cream and an egg yolk. I deviated from the instructions to follow the usual procedure for making pastry in the food processor. First I combined all of the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt), followed by cold butter, and finally the egg yolk and cream. I divided the dough into two parts and put them in the fridge to chill.
I was also confused by the instructions for the filling. You are supposed to combine powdered sugar, ground almonds, vanilla, salt, and melted butter in a bowl, and then fold in egg whites beaten to stiff peaks, to "create a light mousse." The problem is, the recipe calls for a relatively large quantity of powdered sugar and ground almonds (200g each) and only 50 g of melted butter and one teaspoon of vanilla. When I mixed those ingredients together with the salt, I got a pile of clumps the size of small pebbles. Then when I folded in the beaten egg whites, I ended up with a dry, fairly stiff paste that didn't resemble a "light mousse" in the slightest.
I had to work hard with an offset spatula to try to spread the filling into the unbaked crust that I had rolled from one portion of the crust dough. I used the remaining dough to cut lattice strips that I laid on top of the filling. I brushed the top crust with beaten egg yolk, put the tart in the oven, crossed my fingers, and hoped for the best.
My tasters loved the tart and my husband liked it so much that a few days later he asked me to make another one for him to take to a client meeting. Tom very rarely makes requests like that, so this tart definitely made an impression on him. The tart didn't bowl me over, but it was beautiful and a real crowd pleaser. After having some serious doubts about this recipe when my filling came out so thick and heavy, I was pleased as punch with the way it all turned out.
Recipe: "Fyrstekake - Norwegian Spiced Almond Tart" from Scandilicious Baking by Signe Johansen.
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