Jane Stacey's Hazelnut Genoise An..

Cooking Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350F. Generously butter and flour the cake pans and then line with parchment paper.

TO MAKE THE GeNOISE, place the eggs and sugar in a large bowl and set over a pan of simmering water (the bowl should not touch the water). Whisk the mixture occasionally until it becomes warm and the sugar begins to dissolve. Transfer one fourth of the mixture to the bowl of an electric mixer. Keep the remainder warm but not hot. Using the electric mixer, beat at high speed until the mixture is very thick and pale yellow and forms a ribbon when dropped from a spatula.

Transfer the mixture to a wide, shallow bowl large enough to hold all the batter (the greater surface area of a large bowl will make it easier to fold without deflating the batter too much). Beat the remaining batches of egg-sugar mixture, transferring them to the large bowl as they are finished. (The eggs are beaten in batches since most standard mixers will hold only 12 eggs.)

Quickly but gently sift the flour over the mixture and fold in just until blended; follow with the ground hazelnuts. Finally fold in the brown butter and vanilla just until all ingredients are incorporated. Immediately pour the batter into the prepared pans, filling them two thirds to three quarters full, and bake for approximately 25 minutes, or until the cakes test done with a skewer, spring bake when lightly touched in the center, and begin to pull away from the sides of the pans. Let cool slightly before removing the cakes from the pans to cool completely on wire racks.

TO MAKE THE DACQUOISE, lower the oven temperature to 300F. Use the bottoms of the cake pans to trace a 6-inch circle, a 10-inch circle, a 12-inch circle, and a 14-inch circle onto parchment paper. Place the parchment sheets, tracing-side down, on baking sheets and set aside.

The centerpiece of any wedding feast, ritualistic, traditional, fanciful, and real, is the wedding cake. It rolls in on its own little mobile stage, or waits Prominently on a special round table or even on a Doric column. Drums roll; photographers scurry; an ornate cutting utensil gleams (a pretty knife, an heirloom spatula, occasionally a golden sword); the bride and groom blush and carve and share the first slice of cake, sweetly, romantically, and usually Marx Brothers style. It is a nice tradition, and everyone smiles and cheers.

Combine 1-1/2 cups of the sugar with the cornstarch and hazelnuts in a food processor. Pulse one or two times. Set aside.

Place 6 of the egg whites in the bowl of a standard mixer. Beat at low speed until frothy. Add 1 teaspoon of the vanilla and 1/4 teaspoon of the cream of tartar and beat at medium speed until soft peaks form. Add 1 cup of the sugar, a tbsp at a time, and beat until stiff peaks form and the mixture is glossy. Transfer to a wide, shallow bowl large enough to hold all the eggs when beaten, and repeat the process with the remaining eggs.

Sprinkle one third of the sugar-hazelnut mixture over the meringue and fold in by hand. Repeat this two more times with the remaining sugar-hazelnut mixture. Place this mixture in a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip no larger than 1/2 inch in diameter. Beginning at the center, pipe concentric circles onto the parchment, using the traced circles as your guide.

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the dacquoise is dry and brittle to the touch. Turn off the oven and leave the dacquoise in the oven until it reaches room temperature, approximately 1 hour.

TO MAKE THE MOCHA FILLING, combine the egg whites and, sugar in a large mixing bowl and place over simmering water (the bowl should not touch the water), whisking occasionally until the mixture is warm and the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and transfer to the bowl of a standard mixer. Beat at high speed until stiff peaks form. Reduce speed to medium and continue beating until the meringue reaches room temperature. Cut the butter into 2-tablespoon-size bits. Still on medium speed, add the butter, a piece at a time, until all the butter is well blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl from time to time. Add the coffee mixture and the Cognac and beat until thoroughly blended. Set aside.

TO MAKE THE WHITE CHOCOLATE ICING, combine half the egg whites and half the sugar in a large mixing bowl and place over simmering water (the bowl should not touch the water), whisking occasionally until the mixture is warm and the sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat and transfer to the bowl of a standard mixer. Beat at high speed until stiff peaks form. Reduce speed to medium and continue beating until the meringue reaches room temperature. Cut the butter into 2-tablespoon-size bits. Still on medium speed, add half (6-2/3 sticks) the butter, a piece at a time, until all the butter is well blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl from time to time. Add half the melted white chocolate and continue beating until evenly blended, scraping the sides of the bowl from time to time. Cover with plastic and refrigerate until ready to use.

Repeat the process with the remaining icing ingredients.

TO MAKE THE CHOCOLATE GANACHE, chop the chocolate into small, matchstick-size pieces and place in a large stainless steel or heat-resistant bowl. Bring the cream to a rising boil and pour, all at once, over the chopped chocolate. Stir until the chocolate is melted and completely smooth with no lumps. Quickly stir in one or two pieces of the softened butter at a time, until completely dissolved. Set aside to thicken to a spreadable consistency.

Cut 4 rounds of cardboard to the exact size of the layers. Cut the hazelnut genoise layers into fourths horizontally. Place one thin layer of the 14-inch genoise on the cardboard. Spread with a layer of the mocha filling. Top with another thin 14-inch genoise layer. Spread this with ganache. Top with the 14-inch dacquoise layer. Spread this with ganache. Top with another thin layer of genoise. Spread this with mocha filling. Top with the final thin 14-inch genoise layer. This completes the bottom tier of the wedding cake. Wrap the cake, with its cardboard support, in plastic and chill in the refrigerator. Continue to layer and stack the other tiers.

Frost the exterior of each tier with the white chocolate icing, smoothing it with a warm knife or spatula. (Warm the spatula by dipping it into hot water.)

Cut six bamboo skewers (chopsticks will shatter the dacquoise) exactly to the height of each tier, insert in each tier as support for the next tier, and set one tier on top of the other. Apply a final, very smooth coat of icing over the entire cake, sides and top.

Place the remaining white chocolate icing in a pastry bag fitted with a very small round tip. Pipe an irregular border along the inner and outer edges of the tiers, and pipe delicate scrolls on the sides of the tiers.

Right before serving, garnish with white chocolate curls.

Wine Pairing(s)

Nittnaus Gruner Vetliner Ice Wine Burgenland

Dalton Sweet Moscato

Warre's Late Bottled Vintage

Graham 'Malvedos' Vintage Port

Penagudo Rioja

Campbells Rutherglen Tokay

Penfolds 'Club' Tawny Port

Faustino VII Rioja

Susana Balbo Malbec

Georgian Royal Khvanchkara