Passover Fudge Glaze Recipes

CHOCOLATE TORTE WITH PASSOVER FUDGE GLAZE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking pan with parchment, and spread hazelnuts on top. Bake until fragrant and toasted, about 10 minutes. Place nuts in a clean kitchen towel, and rub to remove loose skins. Place 1/3 cup nuts in bowl of food processor, and pulse until finely ground; reserve. Roughly chop remaining 1 cup nuts, and set aside.
• Grease a 9-inch round cake pan with margarine; dust with cocoa powder. Whisk together remaining 3/4 cup cocoa powder, ground hazelnuts, and matzo meal; set aside.
• In a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat yolks and brown sugar on medium-high speed until mixture holds a ribbonlike trail for 3 seconds when you raise the whisk, about 45 seconds. Fold in 1 cup nut puree from fudge glaze recipe. Transfer to a large bowl; wash and dry mixer bowl and attachment. Place egg whites and salt in mixer bowl; beat with whisk attachment on medium-high speed until soft peaks form, about 1 minute. With mixer running, slowly add superfine sugar; beat until stiff and glossy. Fold egg whites and ground-hazelnut mixture into egg-yolk mixture. Fold in melted margarine. Transfer batter to prepared pan; smooth top with an offset spatula.
• Transfer to oven; bake until a wooden skewer inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool, about 1 1/2 hours.
• Invert pan, and remove cake. Using a serrated knife, slice cake into two layers. Place a 9-inch cake round on a wire rack set on a baking sheet. Place bottom layer of cake on round; spread 1/2 cup fudge glaze on top. Place second layer on bottom layer. Pour remaining glaze over cake, using the offset spatula to cover sides. Refrigerate 30 minutes.
• When ready to serve, press chopped hazelnuts onto sides.

PASSOVER CHOCOLATE TORTE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line bottom and sides of a 9 inch springform pan with foil. Grease foil.
• Melt margarine and chocolate over low heat. Stir until smooth and let cool.
• In a medium-size mixing bowl, beat whites until stiff; about 2 minutes. In a separate bowl, beat together yolks and sugar until thick and pale; about 1 minute. Blend in chocolate mixture and stir in almonds. Fold in beaten whites, 1/3 at a time, into chocolate until no streaks of white remain. Scrape into prepared pan.
• Place an 8 inch baking pan with 1 inch of water in it on the bottom rack of the oven (to make the torte more moist).
• Bake torte on center rack at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 to 50 minutes, or until sides begin to pull away from pan and top is set in center. Cover the torte loosely with foil for the last 20 minutes of baking. Note: Don't worry if the cake cracks because the top will be on the bottom later.
• Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes and then carefully remove sides of pan. Invert onto a serving plate and cool completely.

PASSOVER FUDGE GLAZE

Steps:

• Place hazelnuts and 1 1/2 cups water in blender. Blend until fine, 30 seconds. Set a fine sieve over a small bowl, and pour blended mixture through. Reserve puree left in sieve for Chocolate Torte. In another bowl, whisk together 1 cup sugar and cocoa powder; set aside.
• Place 1 cup nut liquid in saucepan with vanilla seeds, margarine, remaining 1 cup sugar, and salt. Bring to full boil. Whisk in cocoa mixture; return to boil. Remove from heat; let cool 30 minutes. Store in airtight container; refrigerate.

SLIVERED ALMOND PASSOVER FUDGE CAKE

Steps:

• Set a rack at the middle level of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.
• Use an electric mixer on medium speed, fitted with the paddle attachment to beat together the butter, sugar, brown sugar, espresso powder and almond extract until light, about 2 minutes. Beat in chocolate, then eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stop to scrape bowl and beater often.
• Beat in the cake meal, then almonds.
• Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake the cake 30 to 40 minutes, until it is fairly firm in the center, but still somewhat soft in general. Do not overbake or cake will be very dry. Cool the cake up on a rack.
• To finish the cake, run the blade of a small knife between the side of the pan and the cake all around to loosen it. Unbuckle the springform side and remove it, but leave the cake on the base.
• To make the whipped cream, combine the cream, sugar and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer and whip until the cream holds soft peaks. Spread the cream over the top of the cake and sprinkle with the slivered almonds. If you are preparing the cake early in the day, leave it covered at room temperature and whip the cream and refrigerate it. Rewhip the cream if it has separated, spread it on the cake and sprinkle with the almonds right before serving.

GLAZED HAZELNUT SQUARES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment, and spread hazelnuts in a single layer on top. Toast until golden and aromatic, 8 to 12 minutes. Shake the pan halfway through baking to make sure the nuts toast evenly. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Place 1 1/2 cups hazelnuts in the bowl of a food processor, and pulse until finely ground; reserve. Roughly chop the remaining 1/2 cup nuts, and set aside.
• Grease a 9-by-9-inch cake pan with margarine, and line with parchment paper. Grease the parchment, and dust with matzo meal. Whisk together the ground hazelnuts and 1/2 cup matzo meal, and set aside.
• In the detached bowl of an electric mixer, whisk egg yolks, whole eggs, and 1 cup sugar over a pan of simmering water until warm to the touch. Transfer mixture to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until mixture is thick, light in color, and leaves a ribbonlike trail on the surface for 3 seconds when you raise the whisk. Fold in matzo-meal mixture. Fold in melted margarine.
• Transfer batter to prepared pan; smooth top with an offset spatula. Bake until a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, about 40 minutes.
• Invert pan, and turn out cake on wire rack so bottom of cake faces up. Set rack on a rimmed baking sheet.
• Spread remaining 1 cup sugar on the bottom of a 10 1/2-inch skillet. In a small bowl, whisk together orange juice and potato starch; set aside. Place skillet over medium-high heat. Without stirring, let sugar begin to melt. When sugar begins to turn golden around edges of pan, about 4 minutes, reduce heat to medium; stir melted and unmelted sugar together. Continue stirring until all sugar has melted and is clear and golden, about 1 minute. Stir in orange-juice mixture; cook, stirring, 1 minute.
• Remove skillet from heat, and stir in the chopped hazelnuts. Pour the glaze over top of cake, and spread the nuts evenly with the spatula. Let cool. Cut into 3-inch squares, and serve.