Thursday, August 7, 2014

Green pistachio cake with honey buttercream

My love for sugary things, especially for cakes, has lead me to this point and to this first post. I'm no expert in baking, I just enjoy it very much and with each cake I bake, with each dessert I'm creating I'm getting better, however, I still have a long way to really learn the art. 

I baked this cake one week ago, before my birthday, I wanted to try this recipe because the only time I've had a pistachio cake I fell in love with it. The cake I had was frosted with a delicious swiss meringue buttercream and I still remember how crunchy the middle icing was. 

With the one I did I decided to split the work in two days, so in one day I did the baking and the other day, the frosting. 

I had some issues with the buttercream, my kitchen was too hot (That day we were at 36°C = 96.8 °F) so you can imagine how messy it got. Still I enjoyed the cake very much, and so did my family, that's why I totally recommend you to jump in to your kitchen and bake this delightful cake.

BTW, I had a little accident with the food coloring gel, so it turned out a luck of the irish kind of green :) 

The recipe I used is from Joanne http://joanne-eatswellwithothers.com/ who from her blog, I can see she's a sweet and charming girl. 






The vase is a belgian antique I found in my house, it belonged to my grandma. 





Pistachio Cake with vanilla and honey buttercream.


Yield: 1 triple layer 8 inch cake.
Serving: 1 slice.

Ingredients

For the cake

  • 1 cup shelled pistachios
  • 2 1/2 cups cake flour
  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 tbsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 3/4 cups sugar
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 1 large egg
  • 3 large egg whites, at room temperature
  • 1/4 tsp cream of tartar

For the buttercream

  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1/3 cup flour
  • 1 1/2 cups milk
  • 1/3 heavy cream
  • 1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, soft, cut into small pieces
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3 tbsp honey

Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 325. Grease and line three 8-inch cake pans with parchment paper.
  2. In the bowl of a food processor (I used a blender), pulse the pistachio meat until it is coarsely chopped. Remve 2 tbsp to a small bowl. Pulse the remaining pistachios until they have almost a powder like consistency. Transfer to a large bowl and whisk together with the all purpose flour, cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter in the stand mixer for 3 minutes. Add in the sugar and vanilla and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add in the egg and mix until just combined.
  4. Turn the mixer to low. Pour 1 1/2 cups ice water into a measuring cup. Add the flour/pistachio mix to the batter in three additions, alternating with the ice water, mixing each time until just combined. Scrape down the bowl and mix on low speed for a few seconds.
  5. In a medium, clean bowl whisk together the egg whites with the cream of tartar until soft peaks form, about 3 - 5 minutes. Fold the egg whites into the batter.
  6. Divide the batter evenly among the cake pans and smooth the tops. Bake for 40 - 45 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool for 20 minutes. Flip the cakes out of the pans, onto the rack ad let cool completely before frosting. Remove parchment paper from the bottoms.
  7. For the buttercream, in a medium heavy saucepan, whisk together the flour and sugar. Add in the milk and cream and cook over medium heat, whisking frequently, until the mixture comes to a boil and then thickens, 10 - 15 minutes. 
  8. Transfer the hot milk mixture to a stand mixer bowl and mix with the paddle attachment on high speed until cool, about 9 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and and add the butter, a few pieces at a time, until it is full incorporated. Increase the speed to medium - high and beat until light and fluffy, a few minutes.
  9. Add in the vanilla and honey and continue mixing until combined. If the frosting is too soft, chill it an mix it again.
  10. To assemble the cake, place one cake layer top side up on a serving platter. Use a long serrated knife to cut the top so that it is flat and even. Spread a little over a cup of frosting on top. Add the next later and, again, trim so that it is flat. Top with another cup of frosting. Add the remaining cake layer and trim the top again. Spread the cake with a very thin layer of frosting for the crumb coating. Put it in the freezer for 10 minutes. Spread the sides and top of the cake with the remaining frosting and decorate as desired.

P.S
For the icing I used almond milk instead of regular milk. It probably wasn't a very wise decision, it tasted sweeter so I had to add less honey to the mix. 




Have a great weekend.
Sofie.

1 comment:

  1. I'm so glad you enjoyed the cake! It's really a great way. And congrats on your first post!

    ReplyDelete