Apricot-Hazelnut Flourless Cakes
Serves: Makes 14
 
Ingredients
  • 2½ cups hazelnuts, toasted
  • 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 8 large eggs, separated
  • 1½ cups superfine or caster sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • Sour Cream Buttercream (recipe follows)
  • Bittersweet Ganache (recipe follows)
  • ¼ cup apricot preserves
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350°. Spray a 17×11×1-inch baking pan with cooking spray. Line with parchment paper and spray again.
  2. In a colander, shake toasted hazelnuts vigorously to remove loose skins. (Or place nuts in a tea towel, and rub to remove skins. Leaving some skin intact is fine.)
  3. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together hazelnuts and granulated sugar until fine particles form. (Don’t overprocess, or a nut butter will form.) Whisk in salt.
  4. In a large bowl, beat together egg yolks and superfine sugar with a mixer at high speed until light and fluffy, approximately 2 minutes. Add vanilla extract, beating until combined. With mixer at medium speed, add hazelnut mixture to egg yolk mixture, beating until incorporated. (Batter will be very stiff.)
  5. In another large bowl, beat egg whites at high speed with a mixer until stiff peaks form. Spoon one-third of egg whites into hazelnut batter, stirring vigorously to loosen mixture. Add remaining egg whites, folding until incorporated.
  6. Using an offset spatula, spread batter into prepared pan, smoothing top. Lightly tap pan on countertop to level batter and reduce air bubbles.
  7. Bake until cake edges are golden brown and a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes. Let cool completely in pan. Using a 2-inch round cutter, cut 28 rounds from cake. (Rinse cutter with very hot water between cuts for ease of cutting rounds and creating sharp, clean cuts.)
  8. Place Sour Cream Buttercream in a piping bag fitted with a medium round tip (Wilton #12). Pipe a ring of buttercream around outer edge of 14 cake rounds.
  9. Place Bittersweet Ganache in another piping bag fitted with a medium round tip (Wilton #12). Pipe inside buttercream circles to fill. Top with remaining 14 cake rounds. Spoon approximately ½ teaspoon apricot preserves in centers of tops of cakes. Pipe drops of buttercream around preserves. (If needed, using tip of a spoon, spread apricot preserves to cover tops of cakes.) Place cakes in a covered container and refrigerate for up to 4 hours. For best flavor, let cakes come to room temperature before serving.
Recipe by TeaTime Magazine at https://teatimemagazine.com/apricot-hazelnut-flourless-cakes/