Blitz Torte

This week, since it was my birthday, I will be featuring my first guest on Essen Girl: my hubby! He made a wonderful cake for me (even if there was a fair bit of swearing coming from the kitchen). I now turn it over to him (I'll be back next week).

These recipes came out of 250 Cake Recipes.

Blitz Torte

1 C sifted cake flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

½ C shortening

1 ¼ C sugar

4 eggs, separated

1 tsp vanilla

3 tbsp milk

½ C sliced blanched almonds

1 tbsp sugar

½ tsp cinnamon

Sift flour, baking soda and salt together.  Cream shortening with ½ cup sugar until fluffy.  Add well-beaten egg yolks, vanilla, milk and sifted dry ingredients.  Spread mixture in two greased pans.

Beat egg whites until stiff but not dry, add remaining sugar (3/4 C) gradually and beat until eggs hold a sharp peak.

Spread over unbaked mixture in both pans. Sprinkle with almonds, 1 tablespoon sugar and cinnamon and bake in moderate oven (350° F) about 30 minutes.

Cool and spread custard filling between layers.  Makes 2 (9-inch) layers.

Great recipe, but a lot of work. Read through it and heed my warnings! First, as a general recommendation, look for shortening with no trans-fats. It is a bit more expensive but it is healthier and substituting butter in this recipe just won’t work, it won’t hold the body and will deflate. Besides, a lot of them have a faintly coconut flavor that is very nice! Second, use a spring form pan if you’ve got it and parchment paper even if you don’t. I mean it, go run to the store and pick up some up. This cake will stick to the bottom like nothing else and the meringue will stick to the sides like glue. Using paper will also allow you to bring the meringue all the way up to the sides and smooth it out nicely. It will not spread on its own. The shape you put in the oven is what you will get out in the end and the meringue will be delicate and delicious. Get it right and you are in for a treat. Also, electric mixers are a blessing for these recipes. Hand-held is great but a stand mixer will make for a wonderful and fulfilling life. It may not be as important as a 401-k or a pacemaker but you’ll think fondly of it more often. I also really like the addition of a bit of cinnamon. You can substitute cocoa powder but it is a bit refreshing to get cinnamon in a non-spice cake. If I make this again I think I will add more cinnamon and a dash of nutmeg.

Also, fun note: 1/8 teaspoon is more technically a pinch of salt and is fine to measure it as the amount that you can hold between your thumb and forefinger. Some people refer to 1/8 as a dash and 1/16nth as a pinch with 1/32 as a smidgen… This is a new definition and really doesn’t make a huge difference. If you need to be that exact, get a scale. For almost all recipes, a little here and there won’t matter and you can feel free to vary proportions of spices and salt (be a bit more careful with leavening ingredients like baking soda, baking powder, or Sal Ammoniac). We combined this cake with the Custard Filling and Fluffy White Icing. The result was a pretty cake with a pretty generic taste profile of vanilla and sweet (with a dash of cinnamon!) but a textural treat that I have never had before in cake. Enjoy!