Next up, we’re making a almond sponge cake that’s based on the Italian red and green tricolor cookies. Feel free to use Springtime colors rather than red and green – posting date is March 26!
Tricolor Cake
Author:
Serves: 1 8-inch (20-cm) three-layer cake • about 16 servings
Ingredients
- For the Tricolor Cake
- 3 cups (385 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 12 ounces (3 sticks/340 g) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the pans
- 2 cups (400 g) granulated sugar
- 6 large eggs
- 14 ounces (395 g) or 2 (7-ounce/198-g) tubes almond paste, at room temperature and coarsely chopped
- 1 tablespoon almond extract
- 3⁄4 cup (180 ml) whole milk Red and green food dyes or gels
- For the Raspberry Filling
- 1 cup (320 g) raspberry preserves
- 2 tablespoons framboise liqueur (optional)
- For the Ganache Crumb Coat
- 12 ounces (340 g) dark chocolate (60 to 72% cacao)
- 1⁄4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (90 ml) heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons framboise liqueur (optional)
- For the Dark Chocolate Glaze
- 10 ounces (285 g) dark chocolate (60 to 72% cacao), chopped (a scant 2 cups)
- 7 ounces (13⁄4 sticks/200 g) unsalted butter
- 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
- For Décor
- Red and green sprinkles
Instructions
Make the tricolor cake
- Preheat the oven to 325°F (165°C). Butter three 8-inch (20-cm) round cake pans, line the bottoms with parchment paper, and butter the parchment. Dust the parchment with our and knock out the excess.
- Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating at medium speed until each is just incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the almond paste and extract, and beat until combined. Again, scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and beat again for 10 seconds.
- Add the flour mixture to the mixing bowl in three parts, alternating with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Scrape down the bowl, then mix on low speed for a few more seconds.
- Transfer one-third of the batter to a separate bowl. Add 5 to 10 drops of green food dye and fold with a rubber spatula until fully and evenly incorporated and the desired color is achieved. Add 8 to 10 drops of red food dye to the remaining two-thirds of the batter in the mixing bowl and fold with a rubber spatula until fully and evenly incorporated and desired color is achieved. (The amount of food dye is entirely up to you; we enjoy paler, less radioactive red and green layers.)
- Divide the red batter equally into two of the prepared pans. Pour the green batter into the remaining prepared pan. Smooth the tops with an o set spatula. Bake, rotating the pans halfway through the baking time, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. Transfer the pans to a wire rack and cool for 20 to 30 minutes. Turn the cakes out onto the rack, remove the parchment, and let cool completely. Once all of the layers are cool to the touch, you can start to prepare the other components of the cake in the order described below.
Make the raspberry filling
- In a small saucepan over low heat, stir together the raspberry preserves and framboise, if using, until the mixture is uniform, warmed through, and the framboise is absorbed completely into the preserves, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool.
Make the ganache crumb coat
- In a large nonreactive metal bowl, combine the chocolate and 1⁄4 cup (60 ml) cream and set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (double boiler method, see page 19). Stir with a rubber spatula until the mixture is completely smooth. Remove the bowl from the pan and stir for 30 seconds to cool slightly. Whisk in the framboise, if using. The glaze should be thick (not quite as thick as hot fudge, but thick enough to coat a cake; if it is too thin it will just run off the sides) in order to get a straight, evenly glazed cake. If the mixture is thin, place the mixture in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes to thicken, stirring at least once or twice; if the mixture is too thick, add the remaining cream, a tablespoon at a time until workable.
Assemble the cake
- Place one red layer on an 8-inch (20-cm) cardboard round (or alternatively, place it on at plate, but know that you will have to transfer the entire cake from the plate to a wire rack to glaze it). Trim the top to create a at surface. Spread about 1⁄2 cup (155 g) of the preserve mixture into an even layer, leaving a 1⁄4-inch (6-mm) border around the edge. Place the green layer on top of the red layer, trim the top, and spread another 1⁄2 cup (155 g) of preserves into an even layer leaving a 1⁄4-inch (6-mm) border around the edge. With the remaining red layer, trim the top to create a smooth surface. Place the just-cut surface on top of the green layer so that the bottom of the red layer becomes the top of your cake. Refrigerate your cake for 5 minutes to set.
- Once the ganache is spreadable, cover the cake, using the ganache like a crumb coat, making sure to use the crumb coat to ll in edges, crevices, and the space between layers. Create as smooth a cake as possible. Refrigerate the cake for about 5 minutes.
Make the dark chocolate glaze
- Remove your crumb-coated cake from the refrigerator and smooth out any bumps with an o set spatula. Transfer the cake to a cooling rack set atop a cookie sheet or half sheet pan lined with parchment.
- In a large nonreactive metal bowl, combine the chocolate, butter, and corn syrup. Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water (double-boiler method, see page 19) and stir with a rubber spatula until the mixture is completely smooth. Remove the bowl from the pan and stir for 30 seconds to cool slightly.
- Working quickly, pour the glaze around the rim of the cake, allowing excess glaze to run down and coat the sides of the cake. Once you have covered the entire perimeter of the cake, work your way inward with the glaze until the entire top of the cake is covered. Do not worry if it looks like there is too much glaze in one spot—you can even out and scrape off excess once done pouring. After all of the glaze has been poured, use an offset spatula to smooth the top—pushing the excess glaze over the sides of the cake. Smooth the sides of the cake. Once the entire cake is completely covered in an even layer of chocolate glaze, decorate the border with sprinkles. Any leftover glaze that was caught by the cookie sheet can be gathered up and spooned into a piping bag and used to pipe a simple border along the bottom of the cake for a super-clean appearance. Transfer the cake to the refrigerator until set, about 60 minutes.
- Remove the cake from the refrigerator and allow it to warm up for about 10 minutes. Run a chef’s knife under hot water, dry it, and slice the cake with the warm knife. Serve immediately.
Notes
[i]How to store:[/I] The cake can be stored, covered, in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
I did my math yesterday to scale this down to a 6 inch cake! We don’t need an 8 inch three layer cake for the two of us lol
Smart! I wish I would have done the same. This is a giant cake. But I timed it for people coming over so I’ll foist it on them. :)
There’s two of us… and I got sick of the huge cakes during pastry school lol