Esterhazy cake is a real recipe and history of creation. Esterhazy cake - step by step recipes with photos

The assortment of Austrian pastries includes many worthy desserts, including the Esterhazy cake. The name and history of the emergence of the delicacy are associated with the family of the same name, which left a noticeable mark on the life of the country. Although this aristocratic family is of Hungarian origin, its lands were part of Austria for a long time, and its members served for the benefit of this power. Therefore, the Austrians consider the famous dish to be their property.

A few words about the Esterhazy family

Not a single country guide is complete without mentioning this name. After all, their palace, erected in the town of Eisenstadt at the beginning of the 17th century, is today a museum that attracts tourists both with its exhibits and its architectural beauty.

Representatives of the family became famous for their actions in the military sphere and in the diplomatic field. However, to modern people they are known primarily as the patrons of Joseph Haydn, one of the iconic figures of Austrian musical culture. From 1761 to 1790, the composer served as bandmaster at the prince's court, and this was the most fruitful period of his life.

Who invented the cake and when?

"Family" baked goods appeared in 1847. According to one version, her recipe was invented by Prince Pal Antal Esterhazy Jr.: he allegedly loved to cook at his leisure. However, the reliability of the information raises doubts: in those days, aristocrats, as a rule, did not know where the kitchen was located in their house.

Most likely, the author of the recipe was one of the pastry chefs who served the family, or perhaps it was a collective creation of kitchen "figures". One way or another, the prince's plan to please his son on his birthday with an unusual dessert was a success. Not only the boy liked the delicacy: for several years it became a popular dish among the entire European aristocracy.

Features of the dessert

It consists of 5–6 dacquoise cakes, laid with soft butter cream with the addition of cognac. On top it is covered with unpainted sugar glaze (now sometimes white chocolate is used), on which thin patterns are drawn with black chocolate coating. It looks familiar to us, but at one time this design made a splash.

"Dakuaz" is a dough without wheat flour. For this sweet dish, it is made with whipped egg whites, sugar and ground almonds. It is this composition that gives the delicacy its characteristic features: its cakes do not get wet from the cream, but they remain crispy, and they simply melt in the mouth.

Today, instead of almond powder, cheaper ingredients are often used - chopped hazelnuts or walnuts. To preserve the classic taste, pastries are lined with almond slices on the sides.

The cream is made by brewing egg yolks with sugar, milk and starch. The resulting mixture is then triturated with butter and flavored with brandy. The result is a fragrant soft mass that creates a pleasant contrast to the crispy cakes.

Where to taste the real Esterhazy?

There are many versions of the making of this dessert posted on the Internet, and in our catering establishments, confectioners prepare it in every way. Wheat flour is added to the cakes, condensed milk, apricot jam, coconut milk, etc. are added to the cream. Products according to such recipes are very far from the classic Austrian Esterhazy cake and resemble it only with a pattern on the surface.

To find out what this delicacy should be in the original, go to Austria, because here they adhere to the recipe according to which the cake was made in the 19th century. In local cafes you will enjoy its almond-chocolate flavor and cognac aroma, crustiness and softness of the interlayer.

You can taste the confectionery miracle in Vienna - one of the best European cities to live. It is worth visiting the Demel confectionery - a place with a 150-year history. All desserts in it are prepared by hand, and visitors watch the process through the glass.

This pastry is also offered in other cities, for example, in Salzburg there is a cafe Bazar, whose menu includes classic Austrian dishes. In Linz, Innsbruck, Graz, there are many pastry shops where you can taste the famous delicacy.

Would you like to know more about Austrian cuisine and catering establishments in this country? Subscribe to our blog updates. For people who are going to leave for Austria or have recently moved, we regularly publish articles with tips on how to organize your life there.

Have you tried Esterhazy cake in Vienna or another city? Share your impressions in the comments, tell us about the pricing policy of the cafe, explain where it is located. It will be interesting to many.

The cake with the unusual name "Esterhazy" is a well-known dessert in the country of Hungary, which got its name from the Hungarian aristocrat Esterhazy Pala Antala, who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1848-1849. For the first time, the cake was prepared by order of the minister for his son by a court chef unknown to anyone. According to legend, the pastry chef had no money to promote the masterpiece. Therefore, all the glory went to Minister Esterhazy. The sweet tooth of all countries admires the divine taste of delicacies. And, indeed, meringue and almond cakes, combined with custard cream, and decorated with an unusual image of a cobweb on top, will not leave indifferent even the most fastidious connoisseur of desserts.

Important points for those who are preparing a cake with the unusual name "Esterhazy" for the first time

  • The cakes are baked without adding flour, exclusively on nuts chopped with a blender or mixer.
  • Before preparing the cake, you must leave the proteins in the room overnight, do not put them in the refrigerator.
  • According to the classic recipe, the cake does not include condensed milk!
  • Sugar frosting in a moderately thick layer, followed by the famous chocolate spider web pattern.

Classic recipe

It is necessary to prepare the following components of the cake:

  • 1 dozen eggs (be sure to separate the yolks from the whites in advance).
    300 g of sugar.
    200 g icing sugar.
    Vanilla sugar (one sachet).
    300 g of nuts (walnuts or hazelnuts).
    250 g butter (fat content - 72.5% or 82%) butter.
    2 tablespoons of cognac (in the original Hungarian cake recipe - apricot schnapps).
    80 g flour.
    1 glass of slightly warmed milk (180 ml)
    100 g of any white chocolate.
    100 g of any dark chocolate.
    4 tablespoons full of heavy cream.
    100 g of almond kernels, ground to a powder.

Baking cakes.

The kernels of hazelnuts or walnuts, while gently stirring continuously, stand in a dry, well-heated frying pan. Grind the cooled nuts to the consistency of flour in a blender (coffee grinder). It is recommended to use a submersible blender attachment and a deep saucepan, and so that the crumbs do not scatter, cover with a towel on top. Beat the egg whites that have been infused overnight until frothy, adding sugar a little (remember that wet dishes prevent the whites from beating well). Continue whisking until stable peaks. Mix the resulting mixture with nuts. On paper (parchment), draw 6 cakes (each 22 cm in diameter). On a greased paper cake, apply the finished dough, gently leveling it with a spatula (you can use silicone mats, even cooled cakes can be removed from them very easily). To get the perfect crust, spread the dough from the center outwards. One cake will need about 4 heaped tablespoons.
Bake the cakes at 1800 C for 10 - 15 minutes. You should constantly monitor the color of the cakes so that they do not become too dark, otherwise their taste will resemble the taste of burnt caramel. They should be golden in color and fairly dense. After the baking time has elapsed, turn the cakes together with the baking paper so that it is on top and remove it immediately. If necessary, trim the edges with a knife, cool. The finished cakes are very brittle and fragile, so experienced pastry chefs advise you to always prepare a spare cake in case one of them suddenly breaks slightly.

Cream preparation.

Beat the slightly softened butter with a mixer (blender) until a fluffy air mass is obtained.
Mix the icing sugar with the pre-separated yolks. Carefully add flour and vanilla sugar to the resulting mass.

Pour milk into a small saucepan and put on low heat. From the moment it boils, carefully add the mixture of sugar mixture and yolks. Cognac should be added last. Boil everything over a low heat, wait for the formation of a cream of a sufficiently thick consistency. Gradually mix half of the cooked butter and almond flour into the cooled cream, beat thoroughly.

Glaze preparation.

According to the classic recipe, Esterhazy cake implies icing like ordinary sugar fondant (fondant). To do this, sift the icing sugar (one full glass) in such a way that the resulting mixture turns out without lumps. Place the powder in a small bowl. Slowly
top up with warm boiled water (3 full tablespoons), stirring constantly, stirring with a whisk.

Once all the sugar has dissolved, the fudge sugar is completely cooked. If the filling prepared in this way is not thick enough, add a little more warm water very carefully.
To apply a pattern, you need to add cocoa powder to the sugar fondant.

But more often in the descriptions of baking the Esterhazy cake, there is a different way of making icing to decorate the dessert. It is proposed to take as its basis both boiled condensed milk and white chocolate mixed with low-fat cream.
To prepare a chocolate-based glaze, melt white (porous) chocolate and add heavy cream to it. "Draw" the pattern of the cobweb with pre-melted dark chocolate mixed with cream.

Assembling the dessert.

Lay the cooled cakes on top of each other, smearing each with a thick layer of cream. It is better to do this with a confectionery spatula made of metal or with a knife with an elongated blade to make the layer more even. In no case should the cakes be stacked on top of each other until they cool down and dry completely.

Smear the top and sides gently with cream, using it a little less than when lubricating the cakes. Remove the cake for 1 hour in the refrigerator.
Fill the surface of the finished dessert with glaze. To apply the pattern, pour the dark glaze into a parchment cornet or a bag and draw a circular pattern on the cake, moving in a spiral from the center to the edges. Draw a skewer (toothpick), alternating lines to the edge from the center and vice versa. The result is the famous Esterhazy cake.
Decorate the sides of the cake with almond petals dried in the oven at 180 C for 5 minutes. Put the finished dessert in the refrigerator and leave for a couple of hours to freeze the cream with icing.

Esterhazy cake is advised to be eaten on the day of preparation, so that the crunchy cakes do not become too soft.

Video recipe

Enjoy your tea!

The Esterhazy cake, the composition of which is as mysterious and enigmatic as the version of its origin, is an original dish of haute Hungarian cuisine. It is a chocolate almond cake made of sponge cakes with layers of apricot jam, candied fruits, nuts and butter cream. This dessert is very popular in Hungary, Austria and Germany. According to one version, the name was coined in honor of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Hungary during the Revolution (1848 - 1849) Pala Antala Esterhazy.

How to make Esterhazy cake?

Ingredients:

  • parchment paper;
  • 300 g of walnut or hazelnut kernels;
  • 10 chicken egg proteins;
  • 300 g sugar;
  • 250 g of natural butter;
  • 10 chicken egg yolks;
  • 150 g icing sugar;
  • a pinch of ground vanilla or 1 packet of vanilla sugar;
  • 2 spoons of cognac or apricot schnapps;
  • 50-80 g high-grade wheat flour;
  • 250 ml of medium fat milk;
  • 100 g of white chocolate;
  • 4 tablespoons of natural milk cream;
  • 60-80 g of dark chocolate;
  • 100 g of almond kernels, ground almost into flour.

Preparation:

Lightly roast the kernels in a dry frying pan over medium heat with vigorous stirring with a spatula, then cool and grind with a coffee grinder or blender. Beat the egg whites into a stable, fluffy, frothy mass. Continuing to beat, add sugar a little. Add chopped nuts to this mass and mix. Draw 6 circles with a diameter of about 22 cm on parchment paper.

We bake cakes

How to bake Esterhazy cake cakes? Put the paper circles on flat baking sheets, coat with oil and distribute the prepared protein dough on each of them with a relatively thin, if possible, even layer (with a spatula). We bake the cakes for 8-10 minutes at 180 ° C until a pleasant light golden hue. Turn the finished cakes over and immediately remove the paper circles. Now let's prepare the cream. Whisk the softened butter into a fluffy mass (preferably with a mixer or blender). Mix egg yolks with powdered sugar and vanilla, gradually add flour. Pour milk into a wet container (ladle), bring to a boil and, gradually adding, mix with the yolk mass. Let's add cognac. We boil this mass for a short time over the lowest heat, stirring continuously, until it begins to thicken. Let us cool the cream (for this we put the ladle in a large container with water) and beat it with the addition of butter and half (50 grams) of almond flour.

We collect the cake

We will lay the cakes slightly cooled down during the preparation of the cream on top of each other, liberally smearing each with cream. Also grease the top and side of the cake with cream, but not abundantly. By the way, you can add a layer or two of candied fruits or apricot jam to give a more multidimensional taste.

Let's prepare the icing

Break a bar of white chocolate into pieces, place them in a small container and melt (preferably in a water bath). Then add the cream and mix thoroughly. Cover the surface of the cake with icing evenly. Let's apply a drawing. Melt the dark chocolate (again in a water bath) and fill it with a pastry syringe or bag (if a bag, then cut off the tip so that a small hole is formed). On the surface of the cake, starting from the center, we apply a chocolate pattern, for example, in the form of a spiral, then 8 radial lines from the center to the edge, thus segmenting the cake into 8 parts. It turns out a "cobweb". You can further complicate the pattern to use all the melted chocolate. Now sprinkle the cake with almond flour and keep it in the refrigerator for at least 8 hours (or better 12).

Serve with coffee or tea.

No condensed milk needed!

There are many opinions about the composition and proportions of Esterhazy cake cream, the composition and proportions of ingredients for the dough are also very variable. But you need to remember that the cream for a real, authentic Esterhazy cake does not include condensed milk. Condensed milk cream cake can be called anything you like, but not "Esterhazy"!

The Hungarian Esterhazy cake is a sumptuous dessert made of chocolate butter cream spread between four layers of sponge cake. It is believed to be named after Prince Esterhazy, who lived in Hungary in the 19th century.

The traditional classic Esterhazy cake recipe may seem complicated and will take some time to complete. Remember that the ingredients for it should not be prepared in advance, as this will significantly ruin the dessert. You will need the following for the classic traditional version.

For biscuit:

  • 5 large egg yolks;
  • 50 grams of sugar;
  • 50 grams of almonds (chopped, raw);
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 3 large egg whites (thoroughly beaten);
  • 1/2 lemon.

For chocolate cream:

  • 350 grams of chocolate (semi-sweet, chopped);
  • 500 grams of butter (softened, unsalted);
  • 5 egg whites;
  • 1 cup of sugar;

For the apricot cream:

  • 1/4 cup apricot jam (heated and mixed with 1 tablespoon of hot water)

For syrup:

  • 3 glasses of sugar;
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1 tablespoon corn syrup

For glaze:

  • 70 grams of chocolate (melted and mixed with 1/4 teaspoon of vegetable oil;
  • 150 grams of almonds (toasted).

Classic cake "Esterhazy": recipe with photo

Heat the oven to 180 degrees. Cover four round baking dishes with parchment sheets. You can only use one mold if necessary, but then you have to bake the cakes in four stages.

Whisk the egg yolks and sugar until lemon color. Add ground almonds and flour, beat and start kneading the dough. Add whipped egg whites and lemon juice separately, but be very careful not to deflate the mixture.

Spread the dough evenly into prepared forms. Bake the cakes for about 10-15 minutes until they separate from the sides and the underside turns golden brown. Refrigerate them directly in the molds.

Cream preparation

The step-by-step recipe for the Esterhazy cake looks like this. Prepare your chocolate cream by melting the chocolate in a heat-resistant bowl in the microwave or water bath. Stir and set aside to cool. Use a mixer to grind the oil at low speed for 2 minutes in three steps. Transfer it to a large bowl.

Combine the powdered sugar, butter and lemon juice, add a little hot water (a teaspoon), stir until the mixture is smooth but very thick. Spread the frosting over the top of the cake using a hot and damp knife. Draw four concentric circles of chocolate on top of the frosting, and then use a skewer to paint the pattern. Press the sliced \u200b\u200bnuts down the sides of the garment to complete the look. On this, the Esterhazy cake recipe can be considered complete. Store dessert in the refrigerator until serving.

"You don't get fat from pies!" - said the great Carlson. From cakes, in general, too. Especially from people like the multi-layered handsome Esterhazy. Would you like to learn how to prepare this spectacular dessert from a classic recipe? Then go ahead!

For three hundred years, pastry chefs around the world have been regularly baking nut meringue, sandwiching it with custard, and decorating it with a traditional white-brown spider web. This is how the Hungarian Esterhazy cake turns out. A delicious handsome man will be the center of attention on the festive table. And if you hint that you cooked it yourself, then half of the guests will line up for a heart and these very hands.

So, let's learn how to cook classic Esterhazy. And on a diet later, from Monday.

Spectacular handsome Esterhazy is easy to prepare

The classics are trending. Esterhazy cake: a step-by-step recipe

To prepare this dessert, we need to bake the cakes separately, sandwich them with cream and then decorate the assembled cake.

For cakes:

  • 8-9 egg whites;
  • 250 g of sugar;
  • 250 g of nuts (walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts);
  • 0.5 tsp cinnamon;
  • a pinch of salt.

For the cream:

  • 200 ml. milk;
  • 1 tsp vanilla sugar;
  • 2 eggs;
  • 100 g of sugar;
  • 20 g flour;
  • 20 g starch;
  • 200 g of boiled condensed milk;
  • 200 g of butter.

For decoration:

  • 200 g of white chocolate;
  • 50 g of chocolate;
  • 50 g of almond petals or walnuts.

Esterhazy's recipe is more than three hundred years old, and during this time it has hardly changed

Cake recipe pretty simple:

  • The first step is to fry the nuts in a dry frying pan, peel them and grind them into small crumbs in a blender.
  • Beat egg whites with a pinch of salt until firm foam. Add sugar little by little, until it is completely dissolved. Bring the protein mass to stable peaks, it should keep its shape and look smooth and dense.
  • Add cinnamon and chopped nuts to the proteins, mix gently, trying to maintain the airiness of the mass.

You can take any nuts: hazelnuts, almonds, walnuts

  • On baking paper, draw a circle with a diameter of 20-25 cm, and fill it with a protein-nut mass. You can use a piping bag or just gently flatten the mass with a spoon. The mass should be enough for 4-6 cakes.
  • Bake on low heat (160 degrees) for 25-30 minutes. Remove the finished cakes from the paper. It's not scary if the cake breaks, during assembly it can be glued with cream.

For cakes, the form is usually not used; it is difficult to pull out the finished cake from it without breaking it.

For the butter custard:

  • Heat milk with 1 teaspoon of vanilla sugar (you can put vanillin on the tip of a knife). While the milk is heating, beat the eggs with sugar, then add flour and starch. Introduce a portion of warm milk into the egg mixture in a thin stream and mix.
  • Bring the remaining milk to a boil, slowly and gently pour in the egg mixture with constant stirring. Bring the cream to a boil again, remove from heat and cool well.
  • Whisk the softened butter with boiled condensed milk until a fluffy beige mass. Continuing to beat, gradually add the cooled custard, achieving uniformity. For flavor, you can add 1-2 tablespoons of liqueur or brandy.

Esterhazy turns out to be not only tasty, but also beautiful in the cut

Assembling and decorating the cake available even to an inexperienced cook:

  • Fold the walnut meringue cakes one by one and sandwich with cream. The topmost crust can be spread with jam or immediately covered with white chocolate. Grease the sides with cream and sprinkle with nut crumbs.
  • Melt the white chocolate in a water bath and pour it over the surface of the cake. Melt the dark chocolate and apply a thin spiral from the center to the edges with a pastry bag. Using a bamboo stick, toothpick or knife, draw diverging lines from the middle to the edges of the cake, then draw lines between them in the opposite direction, from the edges to the center.

The cake can be refrigerated overnight to soak it better.