LEMON ANGEL FOOD CAKE WITH WALNUTS This easy-to-prepare French cake is made with egg whites and not yolks, but is richer than American angel food cake because it contains butter. You can serve it with vanilla whipped cream and tender sweet fruit such as fresh persimmons.The cake can be kept, wrapped, 3 days in refrigerator; or it can be frozen.Makes 8 servings ✔ 100 gr. (7 Tbsp.) unsalted butter ✔ 12 walnut halves ✔ 1⁄2 cup all-purpose flour ✔ 6 Tbsp. cornstarch ✔ grated zest of 1 lemon (about 2 tsp.) ✔ 6 large egg whites ✔ 3⁄4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. sugarPreheat oven to 175ºC. Melt butter in small saucepan over low heat. Let cool but do not let it harden.Butter and flour a 20-cm. cake pan, about 5 cm. deep, with nonstick surface; if surface is not nonstick, lightly butter its base, line it with a round of foil or parchment paper, and then butter and flour foil and sides of pan. Put walnuts in pan at equal intervals. Sift flour with cornstarch into bowl. Add grated lemon.Beat egg whites to soft peaks. Gradually add sugar while beating, and then beat at high speed about 30 seconds or until whites are stiff and shiny. Fold in flour mixture in 2 batches. Before mixture is entirely blended, lightly fold in butter.Carefully spoon a little of the batter over the nuts without moving them. Then spoon remaining batter into pan. Gently smooth top. Bake about 35 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into center of cake comes out dry. Run knife around cake. Turn out onto a rack and cool.WALNUT PROFITEROLES WITH CHOCOLATE SAUCE These small cream puffs are filled with toasted walnut whipped cream and served with a shiny warm chocolate sauce and toasted walnut halves. Instead of walnut liqueur, you can use fruit, chocolate or coffee liqueur, or substitute 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract.The pastries taste best on the day they are baked but the sauce can be made up to a week ahead; reheat it in a pan above hot water, stirring constantly.If you can, toast the walnuts used for garnish at the last moment, so you can serve them while they are still warm.Makes 15 to 20 small pastries ✔ Choux Pastry (see recipe below) ✔ 1 cup walnut halves or pieces (for filling), plus 15 to 20 additional ones (optional, for garnish) ✔ 2 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. sugar ✔ 1⁄2 cup whipping cream, well-chilled ✔ 2 to 3 Tbsp. walnut liqueur ✔ Rich Chocolate Sauce (see recipe below)To make Pastry: Prepare choux pastry (see recipe below). Position rack in lower third of oven and preheat to 200ºC. Lightly butter 2 baking sheets. Using a pastry bag and medium-sized plain tip, shape mounds of Choux Pastry dough about 3 cm. in diameter, spacing them about 5 cm. apart on buttered baking sheets. Brush them with beaten egg left from making dough, gently pushing down any points. Bake about 28 minutes or until dough is puffed and browned; cracks that form during baking should also be brown. Using a serrated knife, carefully cut off top third of each puff; set aside as a “hat.” Cool puffs on a rack.To make toasted walnut whipped cream: Preheat oven to 175ºC . Toast walnuts for 5 to 7 minutes or until fragrant; transfer to a plate and let nuts cool completely. If desired, set aside 15 to 20 walnut halves or pieces for garnish. Grind remaining walnuts with 1 tablespoon sugar in a food processor to a fine powder. Transfer to a medium bowl. In a large chilled bowl whip cream with remaining 4 teaspoons sugar until stiff. Fold in ground nuts in 2 batches.Gradually fold in liqueur. Spoon into cream puffs. Set reserved “hats” on top.Refrigerate until ready to serve.Prepare sauce (see recipe below). Warm it over hot water before serving. Serve pastries coated with sauce and garnished with toasted walnuts.Choux Pastry Makes enough for 15 to 20 small cream puffs.✔ 1⁄2 cup plus 1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour ✔ 1⁄2 cup water ✔ 1⁄4 tsp. salt ✔ 1⁄4 cup unsalted butter, cut in pieces ✔ 3 large eggs Sift flour onto a piece of waxed paper. In a small heavy saucepan combine water, salt and butter. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until butter melts. Bring to a boil; remove from heat. Immediately add flour all at once; stir quickly with a wooden spoon until mixture is smooth. Set pan over low heat; beat mixture about 30 seconds.Remove from heat; cool about 3 minutes. Add 1 egg; beat thoroughly into mixture. Add second egg; beat mixture until smooth. Beat third egg in a small bowl. Gradually beat 1 or 2 tablespoons of this egg into dough, adding enough so dough becomes very shiny and is soft enough so it just falls from the wooden spoon. Add a pinch of salt to remaining egg; beat until blended. Reserve as glaze and refrigerate until ready to use.Rich Chocolate Sauce Makes enough for 15 to 20 profiteroles ✔ 140 gr. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped✔ 4 large egg yolks✔ 1 Tbsp. sugar✔ 1⁄4 cup whipping cream✔ 1⁄4 cup milkMelt chocolate in a medium bowl set above nearly simmering water. Stir until smooth. Remove from water.Whisk yolks with sugar and cream in a small metal bowl. Set in a pan of nearly simmering water. Heat, whisking, until mixture reaches 70ºC on an instant-read or candy thermometer, about 1 minute.Immediately remove from water and whisk 1 minute to cool. Whisk in chocolate.Gradually whisk in milk. Return to pan of water and heat, stirring, 3 minutes or until warm.Faye Levy is the author of Fresh from France: Dessert Sensations and of the award-winning book Chocolate Sensations, which was published in Hebrew as Shokolad!
Cooking class: Baking's best nut
Toast walnuts to add sensational flavor to your cakes, cookies and pastries.
LEMON ANGEL FOOD CAKE WITH WALNUTS This easy-to-prepare French cake is made with egg whites and not yolks, but is richer than American angel food cake because it contains butter. You can serve it with vanilla whipped cream and tender sweet fruit such as fresh persimmons.The cake can be kept, wrapped, 3 days in refrigerator; or it can be frozen.Makes 8 servings ✔ 100 gr. (7 Tbsp.) unsalted butter ✔ 12 walnut halves ✔ 1⁄2 cup all-purpose flour ✔ 6 Tbsp. cornstarch ✔ grated zest of 1 lemon (about 2 tsp.) ✔ 6 large egg whites ✔ 3⁄4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. sugarPreheat oven to 175ºC. Melt butter in small saucepan over low heat. Let cool but do not let it harden.Butter and flour a 20-cm. cake pan, about 5 cm. deep, with nonstick surface; if surface is not nonstick, lightly butter its base, line it with a round of foil or parchment paper, and then butter and flour foil and sides of pan. Put walnuts in pan at equal intervals. Sift flour with cornstarch into bowl. Add grated lemon.Beat egg whites to soft peaks. Gradually add sugar while beating, and then beat at high speed about 30 seconds or until whites are stiff and shiny. Fold in flour mixture in 2 batches. Before mixture is entirely blended, lightly fold in butter.Carefully spoon a little of the batter over the nuts without moving them. Then spoon remaining batter into pan. Gently smooth top. Bake about 35 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into center of cake comes out dry. Run knife around cake. Turn out onto a rack and cool.WALNUT PROFITEROLES WITH CHOCOLATE SAUCE These small cream puffs are filled with toasted walnut whipped cream and served with a shiny warm chocolate sauce and toasted walnut halves. Instead of walnut liqueur, you can use fruit, chocolate or coffee liqueur, or substitute 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract.The pastries taste best on the day they are baked but the sauce can be made up to a week ahead; reheat it in a pan above hot water, stirring constantly.If you can, toast the walnuts used for garnish at the last moment, so you can serve them while they are still warm.Makes 15 to 20 small pastries ✔ Choux Pastry (see recipe below) ✔ 1 cup walnut halves or pieces (for filling), plus 15 to 20 additional ones (optional, for garnish) ✔ 2 Tbsp. plus 1 tsp. sugar ✔ 1⁄2 cup whipping cream, well-chilled ✔ 2 to 3 Tbsp. walnut liqueur ✔ Rich Chocolate Sauce (see recipe below)To make Pastry: Prepare choux pastry (see recipe below). Position rack in lower third of oven and preheat to 200ºC. Lightly butter 2 baking sheets. Using a pastry bag and medium-sized plain tip, shape mounds of Choux Pastry dough about 3 cm. in diameter, spacing them about 5 cm. apart on buttered baking sheets. Brush them with beaten egg left from making dough, gently pushing down any points. Bake about 28 minutes or until dough is puffed and browned; cracks that form during baking should also be brown. Using a serrated knife, carefully cut off top third of each puff; set aside as a “hat.” Cool puffs on a rack.To make toasted walnut whipped cream: Preheat oven to 175ºC . Toast walnuts for 5 to 7 minutes or until fragrant; transfer to a plate and let nuts cool completely. If desired, set aside 15 to 20 walnut halves or pieces for garnish. Grind remaining walnuts with 1 tablespoon sugar in a food processor to a fine powder. Transfer to a medium bowl. In a large chilled bowl whip cream with remaining 4 teaspoons sugar until stiff. Fold in ground nuts in 2 batches.Gradually fold in liqueur. Spoon into cream puffs. Set reserved “hats” on top.Refrigerate until ready to serve.Prepare sauce (see recipe below). Warm it over hot water before serving. Serve pastries coated with sauce and garnished with toasted walnuts.Choux Pastry Makes enough for 15 to 20 small cream puffs.✔ 1⁄2 cup plus 1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour ✔ 1⁄2 cup water ✔ 1⁄4 tsp. salt ✔ 1⁄4 cup unsalted butter, cut in pieces ✔ 3 large eggs Sift flour onto a piece of waxed paper. In a small heavy saucepan combine water, salt and butter. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until butter melts. Bring to a boil; remove from heat. Immediately add flour all at once; stir quickly with a wooden spoon until mixture is smooth. Set pan over low heat; beat mixture about 30 seconds.Remove from heat; cool about 3 minutes. Add 1 egg; beat thoroughly into mixture. Add second egg; beat mixture until smooth. Beat third egg in a small bowl. Gradually beat 1 or 2 tablespoons of this egg into dough, adding enough so dough becomes very shiny and is soft enough so it just falls from the wooden spoon. Add a pinch of salt to remaining egg; beat until blended. Reserve as glaze and refrigerate until ready to use.Rich Chocolate Sauce Makes enough for 15 to 20 profiteroles ✔ 140 gr. bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped✔ 4 large egg yolks✔ 1 Tbsp. sugar✔ 1⁄4 cup whipping cream✔ 1⁄4 cup milkMelt chocolate in a medium bowl set above nearly simmering water. Stir until smooth. Remove from water.Whisk yolks with sugar and cream in a small metal bowl. Set in a pan of nearly simmering water. Heat, whisking, until mixture reaches 70ºC on an instant-read or candy thermometer, about 1 minute.Immediately remove from water and whisk 1 minute to cool. Whisk in chocolate.Gradually whisk in milk. Return to pan of water and heat, stirring, 3 minutes or until warm.Faye Levy is the author of Fresh from France: Dessert Sensations and of the award-winning book Chocolate Sensations, which was published in Hebrew as Shokolad!