Vanilla, caramel and chocolate cake

This cake is a variation from the banana caramel and chocolate cake. You’ll need to use quality vanilla beans and to let them infuse longer than usual (20 min or more) so as to bring out all their flavor.

Ingredients for a 10x3 cake

Decoration
Nougatine
125 g sugar
50 g slivered almonds
3 drops of lemon or 50 g glucose

Dried-fruit crumble
100 g butter
100 g all-purpose flour
50 g sugar
50 g brown sugar
100 g dried fruit (almond, hazelnut, coconut… you can vary)
40 g butter

Creamy caramel
435 g boiling heavy whipping cream
60 g egg yolk
90 g egg white
30 g cornstarch
210 g sugar
100 g butter
3 gelatin sheets Dr. Oetker (6 g)
8 g orange liquor (optional)

Light vanilla cream
470 g whole milk
2 vanilla beans
110 g egg yolk
110 g sugar
47 g cornstarch
47 g butter
400 g cold heavy whipping cream
3 gelatin sheets Dr. Oetker (6 g)

Chocolate cream
125 g whole milk
30 g sugar
45 g egg yolk
170 g chocolate 48% cacao
80 g chocolate 67% cacao
180 g cold heavy whipping cream 

Method

Dried-fruit crumble
- Preheat the oven to 340°F.
- With the flat mixing paddle of a stand mixer (Cuisineart or KitchenAid) on low speed, beat 100 g of butter with the flour.
- Add the sugar and dried fruits.
- Spread and bake for approximately 15 min.
- Cool the crumble and put it back into the electric mixer on low speed.
- Add 40 g of melted butter.
- Spread and press the crumble in a 10x3 ring on a cake cardboard and put it in the fridge.

Creamy caramel
- Hydrate the gelatin in cold water.
- On medium heat, caramelize the sugar.
- Once mildly brown, add the boiling whipping cream.
- Beat together the eggs and the cornstarch without whitening or frothing.
- Pour in 1/3 of caramel, blend, add the rest and blend.
- Put the caramel back in the pan over high heat and beat until it thickens.
- Remove the pan and add the butter.
- Blend with a hand blender.
- Once cooled, melt the gelatin in the microwave without boiling and add in the caramel with the orange liquor.
- Pour the caramel in a 9-inch wide ring put over the crumble and put it back in the fridge.

Light vanilla cream
- Split the vanilla bean in two and scrape the seeds into the milk. Bring to a boil and let it infuse 20 min or more.
- Hydrate the gelatin in cold water.
- Meanwhile, beat together the yolks, the sugar and the cornstarch without whitening or frothing.
- Boil the milk again and pour 1/3 into the eggs, blend, add in the rest and blend.
- Put it back into the pan by pouring it through a strainer and beat over high heat until it thickens.
- Remove the pan and add the butter.
- Cool it rapidly stirring the whole time so as to prevent the cream from drying.
- Once it is cool, whip the cream and fold it gently in the pastry cream.
- Pour the cream over the caramel in the same ring and put everything in the fridge.

Chocolate cream
- Put both chocolates in a mixing bowl.
- Boil the milk.
- Beat together the egg yolks and the sugar without whitening or frothing.
- Pour in 1/3 of boiling milk, beat, add the rest and beat.
- Put the custard back in the pan and cook over low heat to 180°F stirring constantly with a wooden spoon.
- Immediately pour over the chocolate, blend with a hand mixer and cool to 86°F.
- Whip the cream and fold it gently in the chocolate cream.
- Remove the 9-inch ring and pour the chocolate cream into the 10-inch.
- Freeze it at least for two hours.

Decorate with the nougatine and some strawberries.

Chestnut mousse and chocolate cream cake with mascarpone-flavored whipped cream

I made this cake for Christmas eve with a mousse that will remind you of Nestle's Marronsuis... only much better. To tone it down, use freshly made mascarpone-flavored whipped cream and don't hesitate to use a lot of it because it is so good.

Ingredients for a 10x3 cake

Decoration

Mascarpone-flavored whipped cream

200 g mascarpone
45 g sugar

230 g cold heavy whipping cream

Vanilla syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

70 g mineral water

50 g sugar

 

Sponge cake

80 g egg yolk

160 g egg white

120 g all-purpose flour

120 g sugar

Confectioner's sugar

Chestnut spread mousse

300 g chestnut spread

250 g chestnut spread

42 g sugar

24 g mineral water

72 g egg yolk

30 g mineral water

15 g brown rum

3.5 gelatin sheets Dr. Oetker (7 g)

330 g cold heavy whipping cream

150 g fragments of marrons glacés (optional)

Chocolate cream

125 g whole milk

30 g sugar

45 g egg yolk

170 g chocolate 48% cacao

80 g chocolate 67% cacao

180 g cold heavy whipping cream

Method

Mascarpone-flavored whipped cream

- Whip together the whipping cream, the sugar and the mascarpone until stiff.

- Put the whipped cream in a pastry bag with a smooth decorating tip.

Vanilla syrup

- Mix together all the ingredients in warm water to allow the sugar to dissolve.

- Put aside.

Sponge cake

- Preheat the oven to 390°F.

- Whisk the egg whites to soft peaks in a stand mixer (Cuisinart or KitchenAid) on high speed.

- Add the sugar little by little until the egg whites are very firm.

- Beat the yolks with a fork and add them to the egg whites. Whisk for 5 seconds on slow speed.

- Add the sifted flour and fold delicately with a spatula.

- Take a pastry bag with a smooth decorating tip (1 cm wide) and make two 10.5-inch biscuits on wax paper. Sprinkle with confectioner's sugar and bake for 10 minutes.

- Let it cool on a cooling rack then cut one of the two biscuits with a 9-inch ring.

Chestnut spread mousse

- Hydrate the gelatin in cold water.

- Mix 30 g of water with 300 g of chestnut spread.

- Whip the egg yolks with an electric mixer on high speed.

- Boil the 24 g of water with the sugar to 239°F, pour immediately on the yolks and beat until it cools to room temperature.

- Heat the rum over medium heat and add the gelatin to melt it.

- Add the rum to the chestnut spread, and then add the yolks.

- Whip the cream and fold it gently in the mixture.

- Add the fragments.

- Put a 9-inch ring over the widest biscuit, soak it and pour 4cm of mousse.

- Slather 250 g of chestnut spread on the back of the other biscuit, place it in the ring and pour a thin layer of mousse.

- Put it in the freezer for about an hour.

Chocolate cream 

- Put both chocolates in a mixing bowl.

- Boil the milk.

- Beat together the egg yolks and the sugar without whitening or frothing.

- Pour in 1/3 of boiling milk, beat, add the rest and beat.

- Put the custard back in the pan and cook over low heat to 180°F stirring constantly with a wooden spoon.

- Immediately pour over the chocolate, blend with a hand mixer and cool to 86°F.

- Whip the cream and fold it gently in the chocolate cream.

- Cut the biscuit before removing the 9-inch ring and pour a thin layer of chocolate cream into the 10-inch.

- Freeze it at least for two hours.

Decorate with the mascarpone-flavored whipped cream on the whole cake.