All Cakes Considered - Melissa Gray [85]
FOR THE PEANUT BUTTER MOUSSE
12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1¾ cups confectioners’ sugar
2 cups creamy peanut butter, at room temperature
2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
1 recipe Devil’s Food Cake (page 173), but without the frosting and jam
TO MAKE THE GANACHE (MAKE THIS EARLY)
1. Bring the cream to a boil over medium-high heat in a heavy saucepan. Remove from the heat, then gradually add the chocolate, whisking until smooth. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
I pour the hot mixture into a large metal bowl, rather than leave it in the hot saucepan. This helps dissipate the heat. I also stir several times while the ganache is cooling to room temperature. You’re looking for it to get thick and spreadable. Because it’s made with milk chocolate and not semisweet or bittersweet, this ganache will not be oily like the ganache for the Dark Chocolate Peppermint Pattie Cake (page 203).
TO MAKE THE ANGEL FOOD CAKE
2. Center a rack and preheat the oven to 375 degees F. Line two 9-inch cake pans with parchment paper. DO NOT SPRAY THE PANS.
3. Dry whisk the flour and confectioners’ sugar together.
4. With the mixer on medium-low speed, beat the egg whites with the whisk attachment while adding the salt and cream of tartar. Increase the speed to medium-high and continue beating until soft peaks form. This will take about 1 minute.
5. Increase the mixer speed to medium and gradually add the regular (granulated) sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, to the egg whites, beating until all the sugar is incorporated. Continuing beating for 1½ minutes more until stiff peaks form.
6. Reduce the mixer speed to low, add the vanilla extract and almond extract, and beat until just incorporated.
7. Remove the bowl from the mixer and sprinkle about half of the flour mixture over the top of the meringue. Fold the flour mixture into the egg whites, about 5 turns of the bowl. Repeat with the remaining flour. Do not overmix!
8. Gently spoon the batter into the prepared pans, mounding it slightly in the center.
9. Put the pans near the middle of the oven rack, without touching, and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until the layers are golden brown and test done.
10. Cool the layers in the pan on a cake rack for 30 minutes, then unmold and and remove the parchment paper.
TO MAKE THE PEANUT BUTTER MOUSSE
11. With the mixer at medium speed, beat the softened cream cheese until it’s light and creamy. While beating, gradually add the confectioners’ sugar, and then the peanut butter. Add the heavy cream and continue beating until thoroughly blended. The mixture should be fluffy. Once finished, set aside.
TO MAKE THE DEVIL’S FOOD CAKE
12. Here’s an economizing-your-time tip: If you only have 2 round cake pans, don’t start making the batter until you’ve gotten the angel food layers out of the oven. By the time you’re ready for a pan, the angel food will be cool and ready to unmold. Just be sure to clean your pans and prepare them before pouring the next cake.
TO CONSTRUCT THE CAKE
13. Now, the original directions call for dividing your layers, but because this cake is a lot of work and I find dividing angel cake in half particularly annoying, I’ve dispensed with that by having you bake 4 layers, total. Once the cakes are cooled, take your serrated knife or your Wilton cake cutter and even up the tops, if necessary.
14. Arrange 4 strips of wax paper in a square on the serving plate so that the edges of the bottom layer will sit on the paper. Remember to stack your layers raw-crumb-side down. Place a layer of devil’s food cake on the wax paper. Spread a third of the peanut butter mousse on top.
15. Add a layer of angel food. Spread a third of the peanut butter mousse on top. Repeat with the second devil’s food layer. Spread with the remaining mousse.
16. Crown the cake with the second angel food layer.
17. Whisk or stir the ganache one more time. Once it is thick enough to spread, go ahead and frost the top of your cake, then the sides. You should still have about a third of your ganache left. Put the cake in the refrigerator