Chocolate Hazelnut Meringue Torte Recipes

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT TORTE

Steps:

• In a small bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture alternately with sour cream and coffee. Beat just until combined., Pour into 2 greased and floured 6-in. round baking pans. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely., For frosting, in a small saucepan, melt chocolate with cream and sugar over low heat; stir until smooth. Remove from the heat; whisk in Nutella. Transfer to a small bowl; cover and refrigerate until frosting reaches spreading consistency, stirring occasionally. , Spread frosting between layers and over top and sides of cake. Garnish with chocolate curls and hazelnuts if desired.

CHOCOLATE, DATE & HAZELNUT MERINGUE TORTE

Steps:

• Cake:.
• Preheat oven to 180c (170C fan forced).
• First, prepare the nuts. Place the hazelnuts on a baking tray and bake at 180C for exactly 8 minutes (set a timer so you don't burn them).
• Remove nuts from oven, wrap in a tea towel and then rub firmly to remove as much skin as possible. You may have to do this a couple of times and rub stubborn ones between your fingers. Don't fuss too much if some skin won't come off - just get rid of as much of the loose papery stuff as possible.
• Put skinned and roasted hazelnuts into a food processor and chop roughly. Place nuts into a medium mixing bowl.
• Now break up the chocolate and place it in the food processor and chop roughly. Don't worry if it's not evenly chopped, some will be like grated chocolate, and you'll have some larger bits. That's fine. Just don't overchop it. Add chocolate to nuts in mixing bowl.
• Cut dates in half then process in a food processor until finely chopped, but be careful not to pulverise them to mush. Add dates to mixing bowl.
• Using your hands or a spoon, mix nuts, chocolate and dates well.
• Now, spray a 22-24cm (9") springform tin with spray oil and line base and sides with silicone paper. Paper should come 2.5cm-5cm (an inch or two) over the top of the tin.
• In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat egg whites until soft peaks form, then add sugar, 1 tablespoon a time, beating after each addition, until all the sugar is used. Continue beating until mixture is stiff and glossy.
• Note: If you don't have a large mixer, it's a good idea to divide the egg whites and sugar in half and beat each half in a different medium sized bowl.
• Using a spatula, gently fold date, hazelnut and chocolate mixture into the egg whites until well combined.
• Spoon mixture evenly into prepared tin, smooth top and bake on the centre shelf of the oven at 180C (170C fan forced) for 50 minutes.
• After 50 minutes, turn off oven, but DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN DOOR! Leave the cake in the oven overnight (or at least for several hours until the oven is completely cold) without opening the door.
• The next morning, you can remove the cake from the oven and decorate it just before serving.
• Ganache:.
• It's best to make the chocolate ganache the day before too. Simply bring the cream to a boil, remove from the heat, add the chopped chocolate and stir until chocolate is melted. Pour into small bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.
• The next day, remove the ganache from the refrigerator and sit on the kitchen bench until it comes back to room temperature (this will take at least 2 hours).
• Decoration:.
• Just before serving, remove cake from springform tin onto a serving plate.
• Add sugar and vanilla to whipping cream and beat with electric mixer until thick.
• Spread whipped cream over the top of the cake.
• Spoon room temperature ganache into a piping bag with a large star nozzle fitted.
• Pipe rosettes around the perimeter of the cake and one large rosette in the centre.
• Remove stems from strawberries and cut strawberries in half.
• Pile strawberries (or berries of your choice) onto the top of the cake.

HAZELNUT CHOCOLATE MOCHA TORTE

Steps:

• MAKE THE BAVARIAN CREME: Lightly oil a round, shallow casserole or bowl approximately 10 inches in diameter.
• Line it with a layer of plastic wrap large enough to overhang the edges.
• In a small cup, sprinkle the gelatin over 1/4 cup of the milk; set aside.
• In another small cup, stir the coffee into the cognac; set aside.
• In a saucepan, scald the remaining 1 cup milk.
• Meanwhile, whisk together the egg yolks, sugar and salt until light and fluffy.
• Gradually beat in the scalded milk.
• Return the mixture to the saucepan and stir constantly over moderate heat until thick enough to coat the back of the clean spoon. DO NOT ALLOW TO BOIL.
• Transfer custard to a large bowl and whisk in the reserved gelatin and coffee mixtures, beating to thoroughly dissolve the gelatin.
• Cool to room temperature, whisking vigorously every couple of minutes to prevent lumping.
• When the custard is cool but not set, whip the cream until almost stiff.
• Whisk a large spoonful of the cream into the custard, then gently fold in the remaining cream.
• Carefully pour the bavarian cream into the prepared plastic lined bowl.
• Refrigerate, covered until firm. (This may be made one day ahead.).
• MAKE THE HAZELNUT JAPONAISE: Preheat the oven to 250.
• Butter and flour a baking sheet, preferably nonstick, and trace a 10 inch circle onto it, using a cake pan or pot lid as a guide.
• Blend together the hazelnuts, 1/2 cup of the superfine sugar and the cornstarch; set aside.
• Beat the egg whites until foamy, then add the cream of tartar and continue beating until the whites form soft peaks.
• Beating constantly, gradually add the remaining 2 T. superfine sugar and continue to beat until the meringue is stiff and glossy.
• Lightly fold the hazelnut mixture into the meringue.
• Spread the meringue onto the 10 inch circle on the baking sheet.
• Bake for 45 minutes, or until the meringue is set but still somewhat soft and just beginning to brown lightly.
• Using a thin metal spatula, loosen the baked meringue layer from the baking sheet. ( the meringue may tear slightly, but it will not show.).
• If it is too fragile to remove from the sheet, cool it on its baking sheet set on a wire rack, and then loosen from the sheet.
• MEANWHILE, PREPARE THE CHOCOLATE GENOISE: Preheat a second oven, of you have one to 350; otherwise, when the meringue is done, raise the heat to 350.
• Lightly butter a round, flat pan at least 12 inches in diameter.
• Line the bottom of the pan with a circle of waxed paper or parchment.
• Lightly butter and flour the paper and sides of the pan.
• In a small saucepan, melt the butter over low heat.
• Skim off the foam carefully.
• Cool slightly.
• Into a small bowl, sift the flour and cocoa together.
• In a large bowl, beat the eggs and the granulated sugar until very light, foamy and almost tripled in volume.
• Add vanilla, then lightly but rapidly fold the flour-cocoa mixture into the eggs.
• When the ingredients are almost but not quite homogeneous, fold in the melted butter.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 10 to 14 minutes, or until the cake springs back when toughed gently.
• Remove from the oven and cool briefly in the pan.
• Invert a pie plate with slanted sides onto a cooling rack, then cover the pie plate with a kitchen towel.
• Lightly sprinkle the towel with confectioners sugar and invert the genoise onto the towel.
• Gently peel off the paper and allow the cake to cool.
• ASSEMBLE THE TORTE: Carefully transfer the japonaise to a serving platter.
• Equally carefully, invert the bavarian creme over the japonaise.
• Peel the plastic wrap off the bavarian and trim any ragged meringue edges off the japonaise.
• Top the bavarian with the genoise, pressing it into a dome shape if necessary.
• MAKE THE FROSTING: Whip the cream until thick but not stiff, then add the confectioners sugar, cocoa and vanilla.
• Whip unti quite stiff.
• Spread over the torte, flattening the top slightly.
• TO DECORATE THE CAKE: Using a swivel-bladed peeler, scrape the chocolate into long shavings.
• Lightly sprinkle the shavings over the torte and chill for a t least 2 hours.
• At serving time, dust lightly with confetioners sugar sprinkled through a small sieve.

CHOCOLATE HAZELNUT PRALINE TORTE WITH FRANGELICO WHIPPED CREAM

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter an 8 1/2-inch springform pan (2 inches deep) or other cake pan with same dimensions and line bottom with a round of wax paper. Butter paper and dust pan with flour, knocking out excess flour.
• In a food processor pulse praline until ground fine. Reserve 1/4 cup ground praline and transfer remaining praline to a bowl. In food processor pulse chocolate until finely ground and add to bowl of praline.
• In a bowl with an electric mixer cream together butter, salt, and 1/4 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in yolks, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, and beat in vanilla. Stir in praline chocolate mixture (mixture will be very thick).
• In another bowl with cleaned beaters beat whites until foamy and add a pinch salt and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in a steam, beating until meringue just holds stiff peaks. Fold one third meringue into yolk mixture to lighten and fold in remaining meringue gently but thoroughly. Pour batter into pan and smooth top.
• Bake tort in middle of oven 45 to 55 minutes, or until it begins to pull away from side of pan. Cool torte in pan on a rack (torte will fall slightly and continue to set as it cooks) and remove from pan. Torte may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Bring torte to room temperature before serving.
• In a bowl with an electric mixer beat cream until it just holds soft peaks. Stir in Frangelico and half of reserved praline.
• Top torte with whipped cream and sprinkle with remaining reserves praline. Serve torte immediately.