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Cooking
Caramel Cake
· 8 servings
Tip: sponge for a baking tray
I never bake a different type of sponge – I just adjust the ratio of eggs (and other ingredients) to the size of the tin. For one baking tray: use a batter made with 4 eggs for a base sponge (the one placed under gelatine-set layers). For one baking tray: use a batter made with 6 eggs for a sponge meant to be sliced and filled.
Tip: sponge for a cake tin
26 cm round cake tin – batter made with 6 eggs. 30 cm round cake tin – batter made with 8 eggs.
Tip: flavouring
The sponge can be flavoured with hazelnuts, coconut, almonds, cocoa, chocolate, etc. Whatever ingredient you mix with the flour needs to weigh the same as the eggs used. I used 50 g of finely ground hazelnuts instead of 50 g of semi-coarse flour.
Weighing the ingredients (6 eggs, 55 g each)
Weigh the eggs in their shells (using however many eggs you plan to use) – you'll need the same weight in granulated sugar and the same weight in semi-coarse flour. Allow 2 tablespoons of hot water per egg.
Whisked egg yolks and whites
Whisk the egg yolks together with the sugar and water. Once the mixture has thickened and the sugar has dissolved, whisk the egg whites into stiff peaks and fold them into the yolk mixture alternately with the flour.
Hazelnuts
Add the hazelnuts or your chosen flavouring.
Bake
Pour the sponge batter into a greased and flour-dusted baking tin. Bake in an oven preheated to 175°C (160°C fan). Baking time depends on the size and height of the sponge, but it usually takes 30 to 50 minutes.
Skewer test
Don't open the oven for the first half hour, or the sponge might sink. After that, you can open the oven and insert a skewer into the centre of the sponge – it should come out clean.
Cooling and slicing
Let the sponge cool completely. Only then slice it into as many layers as you like, depending on its height.
Caramelising the sugar
Bring the cream to the boil in one saucepan. Put the sugar in a second saucepan. Turn the heat up to nearly full and wait for the sugar to melt. I recommend using a stainless steel pan – you can ruin a non-stick one this way. The sugar will gradually caramelise into a lovely golden colour.
Watch out for hot caramel and colour
Keep an eye on two things: don't burn yourself (hot caramel really hurts!), and don't let the caramel get too dark – it can scorch and turn bitter.
Stir in the butter and salt
Take the finished caramel off the heat and stir in the butter – I use plain butter and about a teaspoon of salt, depending on how salty you like your caramel. Stir until the two combine.
Pour in the cream and stir
Return the pan to the heat and stir over low heat. Slowly pour in the hot cream. Keep stirring until you get a smooth caramel mixture. Let it cool completely.
Whip into a cream
Beat the softened butter together with the cooled caramel. Whip for a good while, around 8 minutes. Add the mascarpone and beat again thoroughly until you get a smooth, silky cream.
Filling and decorating
Spread a generous layer of cream between each sponge layer. Assemble the cake and cover the top and sides with cream too. You can sprinkle it with sponge crumbs and decorate however you like.