Delicious and not to sweet. Name "Agnes Bernauer" can only be used by Kroenner Cafe in Bavaria. This torte has macaroon layers interleaved with mocha buttercream.
Ingredients for macaroon layers:
- 270 g egg whites,
- 225 g fine sugar,
- 200 g grounded almonds,
- 2 Tbsp corn starch,
- 1,5 Tbsp cocoa powder,
- 70 g confectioners sugar,
- 1 tsp cinnamon,
- 50 g sliced almonds.
- Sift almond flour three times. Discard any large pieces that do not pass through a sieve. Make sure that at the end you have desired weight. Add confectioners sugar, cocoa powder, cinnamon and sift one more time almond mixture into a clean bowl.
- Brush the bowl of a stand mixer with a lemon juice to make sure it's not greasy. Beat egg whites until foamy with a whisk attachment. Add slowly fine sugar spoon by spoon and beat on medium speed for 5-10 minutes, or until stiff peaks form. The beaten egg whites should stick to the whisk when you remove it.
- Pour dry ingedients into the bowl with egg whites. Using a spatula, fold dry ingredients into egg whites, until the batter is thick and lava-like. This should take about 70-80 folds. Do not overmix. The batter should slowly fall off your spatula when you pick it up and any peaks in the batter should settle down within 20 seconds.
- Transfer batter to a piping bag fitted with large tip. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Pipe 5 circles 7" diameter onto parchment paper. Once all layers are piped out, slam the baking sheet against a flat stable surface, then rotate, and slam again. This is done to force any large air bubbles to the surface.
- Sprinkle each layer with 10 g of sliced almonds.
- Preheat oven to 340°F. Bake all 5 circles at once on the middle rack for 20-30 minutes. Oven temperature varies, so keep an eye on them. That should be crispy, flat and light brown. Do not over bake them. Let cool on baking sheet for 20 minutes and transfer to the wire rack.
- 6 large egg yolks,
- 100 g + 30g fine sugar,
- 3 Tbsp corn starch,
- 3 Tbsp all purpose,
- 600 ml whole milk,
- 3 Tbsp instant espresso coffee,
- 250 unsalted butter, room temperature,
- 3-5 Tbsp coffee liquor
- In the medium size of pot boil 500 ml milk with sugar (110g) and instant espresso coffee.
- Whisk egg yolks with remaining milk (100 ml) and both kinds of flour.
- Pour yolks mixture into boiling milk and whisk until getting thick, pudding consistency. Cover with plastic wrap making sure that it touch to the pudding surface.
- Beat butter with 30 g sugar until pale and fluffy. Add coffee pudding slowly beating each time until smooth and creamy. Be careful, do not overbeat butter.
- ½ cup sliced almonds,
- 2 Tbsp confectioners sugar.
- Divide buttercream into 5 portions.
- Spread or pipe the buttercream on top of the first cake layer and stop 1/4 inch away from the edge. Place the next round of cake on top, press down starting from the center and moving out towards the edges. Repeat with each cake layer until all the layers have been stacked.
- Frost a side using remaining buttercream and sprinkle with sliced almonds. Drizzle top of the cake with confectioners sugar. Cake can be prepared day ahead. Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
*Note: for this recipe I'm using metric system of measurement. In case of this cake it's very important to be specific with weight of the ingredients.
Inspiration: Moje Wypieki and Oetker website
