Here are individually-sized chocolate treats that you can bring anywhere. The heart of each travel cake is a tender, gluten-free chocolate sponge cake, made with roasted almond powder and 80 percent dark chocolate. Topped with silky chocolate caramel ganache and encased in a crisp dark chocolate shell, these cakes are finished with roasted almond and cacao nibs for added crunch, and a touch of gold leaf for elegance.
Yield: 12 travel cakes
Moist Gluten–Free Chocolate P125 Sponge Cake
- 245 g roasted almond powder
- 200 g superfine granulated sugar
- 365 g whole eggs, room temperature
- 100 g unsalted butter 84%
- 100 g Valrhona Coeur de Guanaja P125 dark chocolate 80%
- 80 g egg whites
- 50 g granulated sugar
1. Mix the almond powder, sugar and eggs in a food processor or in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment for 4 minutes. The mixture should be smooth.
2. Melt the butter with the chocolate to 113°F (45°C) and add to the egg mixture. Mix for 4 minutes more.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites with the regular granulated sugar into a light and stable meringue. Gently fold the meringue into the chocolate batter with a silicone spatula.
4. Pour the batter into a Flexipan Inspiration Guy Demarle 8.6ʺ x 8.6ʺ x 1.7ʺ (22 x 22 x 4.5 cm) baking mold and spread it with a spatula. Bake at 338°F (170°C) for 20-25 minutes. Check the doneness of the sponge cake by piercing it with a knife. If the knife comes out clean, the cake is ready. Cool the sponge cake down at room temperature, then wrap it with cling film and put it in the refrigerator overnight.
Tender Chocolate Caramel Ganache
- 340 g heavy cream 35%
- 23 g glucose or light corn syrup
- 2 g fleur de sel
- 173 g granulated sugar
- 63 g clarified butter
- 227 g Valrhona Tanariva milk chocolate 33%
1. Warm the cream with the glucose syrup and the salt to 176°F (80°C). Cover the mixture with cling film and set it aside.
2. Make the caramel by gradually caramelizing the sugar in a saucepan. First, add a part of sugar to the saucepan, melt it until the sugar starts turning golden, and then add the next portion of sugar. Do not add the next portion of sugar until the previous has melted completely. When all the sugar melts and turns amber, gradually add the melted clarified butter to it. Mix well and then add the hot mixture of cream, salt and glucose syrup. Mix well again. Let the temperature drop to 165-180°F (75-80 °C).Then gradually pour the caramel into the melted chocolate and mix with a spatula to create an emulsion. Immediately process the mixture using a hand blender to make a perfect emulsion.
3. Transfer the ganache to a shallow container, cover it with plastic wrap and leave to crystallize in the refrigerator for 12 hours.
Assembly
- Sea salt
1. Cut the sponge cake into rectangles measuring 1.2ʺ x 4ʺ (3 x 10 cm).
2. Using a piping bag fitted with a 0.5ʺ (13 mm) round tip, pipe tubes of the ganache along the sponge rectangles. Sprinkle the ganache tubes with some sea salt. Put the cakes in the freezer at -6°F (-21°C) until completely frozen.
Dark Chocolate Coating
- 300 g Valrhona Caraïbe dark chocolate 66%
- 100 g grapeseed oil
- 63 g roasted almond nibs or cacao nibs
1. Melt the chocolate to 104°F (40°C). Add the grapeseed oil and mix well with a spatula. Add the roasted almond nibs or cacao nibs and mix well.
2. Use the coating at 95-100°F (35-38°C).
Glazing and Decorating
- Gold leaf
1. Dip the frozen cakes into the Dark Chocolate Coating. Let the excess coating drip off and then put the cakes onto a clean piece of parchment paper.
2. Decorate the travel cakes with the gold leaf.
(This recipe appeared in the Spring 2024 issue of Pastry Arts Magazine)
You must be logged in to post a comment.