I could very easily sit and eat the meringue layers in this cake. They make such a good little snack – sweet and crisp with slightly chewy edges. But to make this a proper dessert, I’ve filled it with a light pastry cream folded in with some marmalade for a subtle lift of citrus. As with anything in this book, you can make and eat any of the recipes whenever you fancy but this does feel more like an ‘occasion’ cake. Something I’d make for a special candlelit evening or for the festive season. Either way, make it more manageable by baking the meringues and preparing the custard the day before and then just assemble a few hours ahead.
Make ahead
Both the meringue and custard can be made up to 2 days before.
Assemble and chill on the day you want to serve.
Serves
12
Ingredients: For the meringue
100g blanched hazelnuts
180g caster (superfine) sugar
3 egg whites
10g cornflour (cornstarch)
For the filling
1 egg, plus 3 egg yolks
80g caster (superfine) sugar
20g cornflour (cornstarch)
200ml milk
300ml double (heavy) cream
¼ tsp fine sea salt
½ tsp vanilla bean paste
10g unsalted butter, softened
70g marmalade, plus extra for dolloping
To finish
Icing (confectioners’) sugar
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan/gas mark 4). A
- dd the hazelnuts to a baking tray and toast for 12–15 minutes until lightly browned and fragrant. Set aside to cool and then blitz in a food processor with 30g (2½ Tbsp) of the sugar until fine.
- Turn the oven down to 160°C (140°C fan/gas mark 3) and line 2 baking trays with baking paper. Draw a 20-cm circle template on each piece of paper using a plate or cake pan to guide you. Turn the paper upside down so the pencil outlines are facing downwards.
- Add the egg whites to the bowl of a stand mixer and whisk on low speed for 30 seconds before increasing the speed to medium-high. Once the egg whites are white with soft peaks, add in the remaining sugar a tablespoon at a time, leaving about 20 seconds between each addition. Once all the sugar has gone in, the egg whites should be thick and glossy with stiff peaks.
- Add the cornflour and whisk for a few more seconds to combine. Tip the ground hazelnuts on top and use a spatula to gently fold them into the meringue.
- Spoon the mixture into a large piping (pastry) bag, snip off the end and, starting from the centre of your templates and working your way outwards, pipe a spiral onto each tray.
- Bake for 40–45 minutes until the meringues look dry to the touch. Turn off the oven and let them cool completely inside to help them dry out. This will take about 50–60 minutes. Once cool, set aside or store in an airtight container until ready to use.
- To make the filling, add the whole egg and yolks to a bowl and mix to combine. Mix in the sugar and cornflour to get a smooth consistency. Add the milk, 200ml (scant 1 cup) of the cream, the salt and vanilla to a small saucepan. Heat gently until steaming and then pour about a quarter onto the eggs, whisking at the same time. Continue pouring in the hot milk while whisking, and then pour everything back into the saucepan.
- Gently heat while stirring continuously until the custard thickens and starts bubbling. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter until it melts. Stir in the marmalade and pour the custard into a clean, shallow bowl. Cover with plastic wrap that touches the surface and let it cool to room temperature before chilling in the fridge for 3–4 hours or until well chilled.
- When ready to assemble, lightly whip the remaining 100ml (scant ½ cup) cream. Whisk the custard well to loosen and remove any lumps. Carefully fold the whipped cream into the custard. Place one of the meringues on your serving plate or cake board. Spoon or pipe the custard on top and add small dollops of extra marmalade, top with the other meringue. Chill in the fridge until you’re ready to serve, dusting with icing sugar right before serving.
Recipe extracted from I’ll Bring Dessert by Benjamina Ebuehi, published by Quadrille. Available in stores nationally.
