The Sachertorte is a famous Austrian chocolate-marmalade cake.
"Sacher" is the name and "torte" is the German word for cake.
The appearance of the Sachertorte is simple. Where other cakes
compete with many colours, fruits, nuts and artful sugar coating,
the Sachertorte is one coloured, smooth and slightly shining and
has the aura of elegance and tradition. Its simplicity reminds one
of a draft from a Bauhaus-designer (that form-follow-function philosophy).
In the pastry-shop you will recognize the Sachertorte among the others
at first glance.
How it tastes? I will leave this to your opinion. Here is the complete
recipe for all who want to try this piece of culture de cuisine.
INGREDIENTS
130 gram butter
110 gram powdered sugar
vanilla
6 yellow of an egg
130 gram chocolate for cooking
6 white of an egg
110 gram crystal sugar
130 gram flour
apricot-marmalade
for the icing:
200 gram sugar
0.125 liter water
150 gram chocolate
HOW TO DO
Warm the cooking-chocolate until it is liquid.
Take another pot.
Warm the butter, add the powdered sugar and the vanilla and froth
with a whisk. While stirring add little by little the 6 yellow of an egg
and then the warm chocolate.
Preheat the baking oven at middle heat
(about 170 degree Celsius or 340 degree Fahrenheit).
Take another pot.
Take the 6 white of an egg and froth with a whisk until you have whipped
whites of an egg. Little by little add the crystal sugar and froth until
the whipped whites are stiff.
With a wooden spoon add very carefully the whipped whites to the mass and
stir. Add the flour little by little to the mass and stir carefully.
Take a cake- form 20 - 25 cm (8 - 10 inch) in diameter. Put a piece of parchment
paper at the bottom of the form. Fill the mass in the form and smooth down the
surface. Put the form in the preheated baking oven.
Leave the oven-door one finger wide open. The mass can expand but does not
develop a crust.
After 15 minutes shut the oven-door and bake further for one hour.
Then take the form out of the oven, put a sieve on the top of the form and
turn the form upside down. Let it cool for 20 minutes and turn it back.
In this position let it cool down completely before you take the cake out of
the form.
Now you can loosen the edge of the cake from the form with a thin knife.
Cut of the parchment paper so the bottom of the cake is smooth.
Cut also the top of the cake smooth.
Warm the apricot-marmalade and stir until it softens.
Stroke the marmalade on the top surface of the cake.
Now the icing:
Stir the 200 gram sugar in the 0.125 liter water and let the solution cook
for 5 minutes. Let it cool down a bit. Meanwhile warm the chocolate until it
is soft. Little by little stir the chocolate in the warm sugar-solution.
You get a thick, viscous icing. It should cover a wooden spoon about
4 millimeter thick after you pull it out the icing. If the icing is to thick
add a few drops of water and stir.
The right temperature is important. When the icing is to hot, it will not
shine after it is cooled down. When the icing is to cold, you can not
stroke it to a smooth surface. The icing should be liquid and not warmer
than you are able to taste.
Pour all of the warm icing on the cake and smooth the surface with 2 - 3
strokes. Than stroke the icing smoothly round the edge of the cake.
Put the cake on a cake plate and let the icing dry completely.
It should dry to a smooth surface.
Serve it with whipped cream on a separate dish.
Bon apetit.