Chocolate Walnut
Crunch Cake
Ingredients:
Chocolate Walnut Sponge Cake:
2 teaspoons unsalted butter melted
½ cup cake flour
¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ teaspoon salt
5 large eggs separated
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup hot water
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup walnut halves toasted and coarsely chopped
Walnut
Crunch:
1 ½ cups walnut halves, toasted and coarsely chopped
2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Chocolate Walnut Frosting:
8 ounces semi sweet baking chocolate coarsely chopped (or use mini morsels)
¾ cup heavy cream
¾ pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into ½ ounce pieces
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350’F. Lightly coat the inside of 2 – 9x1.5 inch non stick cake pans with some of the 2 teaspoons of melted butter. Line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper and then lightly coat with more butter. Set aside.
In a sifter combine ½ cup cake flour, ¼ cup cocoa powder, 2 teaspoons baking powder, and ¼ teaspoon salt. Sift onto a piece of parchment or wax paper and set aside till needed.
Place 5 egg yolks and ¼ cup of the sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle. Beat on medium – high for 3 minutes till combined and slightly thickened. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl; then beat on medium high for an additional 2 minutes until very thick. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Operate the mixer on low while adding the sifted dry ingredients; mix until thoroughly incorporated, about 45 seconds. Add ¼ cup hot water and 1 tsp vanilla extract on low to combine; about 45 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the chopped walnuts and mix on medium to thoroughly combine, about 10 seconds. Transfer the batter to a large bowl and set aside at room temperature while whisking the egg whites.
Place 5 egg whites and the remaining ¼ cup sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk. Whisk on high speed for about 2 minutes until soft peaks form. Add about 1/3 of the whisked egg whites to the batter in the large bowl and use a rubber spatula to fold together until thoroughly combined.
Immediately divide the cake batter into the prepared pans (about 2 ½ cups of batter in each pan), spreading it evenly. Bake on the center rack in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Remove the layers from the oven and cool in the pans for 10 minutes at room temperature. Invert the cake layers onto cake circles (or cake plates). Carefully peel the paper away from the bottom of the cakes. Refrigerate them until needed.
Make The
Walnut Crunch
Place the toasted walnuts on a baking sheet and set aside.
Place 2 cups sugar and 1 tsp lemon juice in a large sauce pan. Stir with a whisk to combine (the sugar will resemble moist sand).
Caramelize the sugar for about 10 minutes over medium high heat stirring constantly with a whisk to break up any lumps. The sugar will first turn clear as it liquefies then light brown as it caramelizes. Remove the saucepan from the heat. Immediately pout the sugar over the walnuts on the baking sheet and place in the freezer to harden for about 10 minutes. Be careful, the sugar in this state is very hot and can burn you if it touches your skin. If you are short on freezer space, you can use the refrigerator, but it may need 20 minutes.
When cooled and hardened, use your hands to break up the hardened walnut crunch into irregular pieces measuring about 2 to 3 inches in width. Place the broken pieces into a food processor fitted with a metal blade and process for 5 seconds until coarsely chopped. Sift the crunch in a medium guage strainer. Discard the finely sifted sugar residue or use it as a beverage sweetener or sprinkle on whipped topped desserts! Store the sifted chopped Walnut Crunch about 2 cups, in a tightly sealed plastic container until ready to use in the frosting.
Prepare
the Chocolate Walnut Frosting
Place 8 ounces chopped semi sweet chocolate pieces in a medium bowl.
Heat ¾ cup heavy cream in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil. Pour the cream over the chopped chocolate. Set aside for about 5 minutes, then stir with a whisk until smooth. Pour the mixture (now called ganache) onto a baking sheet with sides and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, about 30 minutes.
Place ¾ pound of butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle. Mix on low speed for 1 minute, then increase the speed to medium-high and beat for 2 minutes until soft. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and the paddle.
Add the coarsely chopped and sifted walnut crunch and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and mix on low for 5 minutes then increase the speed to medium and beat for an additional 10 seconds until thoroughly combined.
Assemble
the Cake
Remove the cakes from the refrigerator. Turn over one of the inverted cakes and return it to the cake circle or plate crust side up. Use a cake spatula to evenly and smoothly spread 2 cups of the Chocolate Walnut Frosting over the top and to the edges of the cake layer. Inver the second cake layer onto the frosting coated cake layer and gently press into place. Spread the remaining 4 cups of frosting evenly and smoothly on the top and sides of the cake. Refrigerate the cake for at least an hour before slicing and serving.
To Serve
Heat the blade of a serrated knife under hot water and wipe the blade before cutting each slice of cake for a nice clean cut. Place each one onto a dessert plate and keep at room temperature for 10 -15 minutes before serving. The cake is good cold, but heavenly when it sits for a few minutes!
Notes: I usually make an extra batch of the Walnut Crunch and break the pieces into irregular sized pieces to garnish each slice. I sometimes reserve just a little icing and make a pretty dollop around the cake to identify each slice (10-12) and then place a piece of crunch on it and push it into the cake so it stays. You can also make this cake over the course of 2 days. Make the crunch, and the cakes on day 1 and make the frosting on the second day and assemble. Wrap the cakes in clear wrap and refrigerate and keep the crunch room temperature in a tightly sealed plastic container.
The dark chocolate in this cake and the richness, call for it to be served with a great dessert wine, my favorite is Michele Chiarlo Nivole. A great Moscato d’Asti, in my opinion.
Buon appetito!
This is a very smooth, creamy and decadent cake... but light too from the sponge cake and whipped frosting.
We ate this so fast, I did not take a picture of it. Will have to make it again!