Sachertorte is the cake for chocolate lovers — a layered chocolate cake filled with apricot jam is coated in chocolate ganache and finished with a chocolate glaze. In this recipe, you can easily tweak the chocolate bittersweetness by using the cacao percentages of your choice in the cake, ganache, and glaze.

Unfortunately, I can’t say how good the cake turned out because it disappeared shortly after the turkey got carved. I’ll take that as a good sign. Thanksgiving was a huge gathering this year so a small dinner table was set aside exclusively for desserts. The table turned into an orgy of all pies pumpkin, apple, and pecan. I thought it improbable that my contribution would be the only chocolate dessert option but I was wrong.

It was only an 8-incher (that’s what she said), so I should’ve known better. Lesson learned: shiny dark disks stand out in a spread of matte brown desserts.

The Ultimate Chocolate Cake Challenge
hosted by Lorraine of Not Quite Nigella

recipe adapted from Wayne Gisslen’s Professional Baking and Michel Suas’ Advanced Bread and Pastry

Sachertorte – Austrian Chocolate Cake With Apricot Filling

makes one 8-inch Sachertorte

Sachertorte Components:

Sacher Cake
Kirschwasser Simple Syrup (optional)
Apricot Jam
Chocolate Ganache
Chocolate Glaçage / Sacher Glaze

Notes:

• Need to scale it up or down for different cake pan sizes? Let me know.
• Use 50 to 64 percent for semi-sweet chocolate and 64 to 85 percent for bittersweet chocolate.
• A bleached low-protein or soft flour is a suitable substitute for cake flour.

For the Sacher Cake:

Ingredients                  Volume          Ounces          Grams
unsalted butter, room temp    6 1/2 tbsp          3.2           91
granulated sugar          scant 1/2 cup           3.2           91
semi-sweet chocolate, melted and cooled           4            113
yolks from large eggs             5
vanilla extract                 3/4 tsp

whites from large eggs            5
salt                            1/8 tsp
granulated sugar                1/3 cup           2.4           68

cake flour, sifted                                3.2           91

Sacher Cake Instructions:

Preheat Oven    325ºF / 165ºC

Prepare an 8-inch cake pan (at least 2 inches deep)
                Use nonstick spray or grease the bottom and sides of the
                cake pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper and dust
                lightly with flour.

Mix - Modified Creaming Method (with soft peak meringue)
                Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
                Add the melted chocolate, egg yolks, and vanilla extract
                in stages, mixing to incorporation with each addition.

                Whip the egg whites with the salt. Add the sugar and
                whip to soft peaks.

                Using a rubber spatula, alternate folding in the flour
                with the meringue in about 4 or 6 additions. Begin
                with the flour and end with the meringue.

Pan             Deposit the batter into the lined cake pan. Place
                the cake pan on a cookie sheet or sheet pan.
                Level and bake immediately.

Bake            325ºF / 165ºC for 45 to 55 minutes, until the sides
                pull away from the pan and a wooden skewer inserted
                in the middle comes out clean.

Cool            Let the cake cool completely at room temperature.

Baked Sacher Cake.

For the Kirschwasser Simple Syrup (optional):

2 tablespoons simple syrup
splash of Kirschwasser

For the Chocolate Ganache:

Ingredients                  Volume          Ounces          Grams
heavy cream             1/2 cup + 2 tbsp          5.3          150
bittersweet chocolate, chopped                    5.3          150
unsalted butter, room temp        2 tbsp           .9           25

For the Chocolate Glaçage / Sacher Glaze:

Ingredients                  Volume          Ounces          Grams
heavy cream             1/2 cup + 2 tbsp          5.3          150
semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped      5.3          150
unsalted butter, room temp        4 tbsp          1.8           50

Chocolate Ganache and Chocolate Glaçage / Sacher Glaze Instructions:

1. In a small saucepan, bring the heavy cream to a boil and immediately remove from the heat.
2. Cool to 190ºF / 88ºC and immediately pour over the chopped chocolate. Let rest for about a minute.
3. Using a rubber spatula, stir gently in a circular motion from the center and work your way outwards as an emulsion is formed.
4. Once the chocolate cools to 95ºF / 35ºC, add the butter and continue stirring gently just until the butter is thoroughly incorporated. The finished emulsion should be shiny and smooth.
5. Use immediately for best results.

Sachertorte Assembly:

Level and Trim  (if needed)

Split           2 layers. Moisten each layer with Kirschwasser syrup
                if desired.

Fill            Sandwich the top and bottom layers with apricot jam,
                about 6 tablespoons for an 8-inch cake.

Prepare the Chocolate Ganache and use immediately in the following step.

Mask            Using a spatula, apply the chocolate ganache to the
                top and sides of the cake as smoothly as possible.

Sachertorte masked with chocolate ganache.

Refrigerate     Chill for at least 30 minutes or until the chocolate
                ganache is set. 

Prepare the Chocolate Glaçage / Sacher Glaze and use immediately
in the following step.

Glaze           With the cake on a wire rack, pour the chocolate glaze
                around the edges to cover the sides. Fill in the
                center. Tap the wire rack to pop any bubbles.

Glazed Sachertorte. Ever licked a wire rack or sheet pan?

Refrigerate     Chill while still on the wire rack until the chocolate
                glaze is set. 

Trim            Remove from the wire rack and trim the bottom. Place on
                a cake board or plate.

Decorate        Using leftover ganache, pipe the word "Sacher" or
                decorative patterns on the cake if desired.

This is a post from Apple Pie, Patis, and Pate
Sachertorte – Austrian Chocolate Cake

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As much as I don’t mind making breads that take at least two days to complete, sometimes a freshly baked batch of yeasty goodness just has to come out of the oven right quick. Using pre-ferments and soakers are just two of many techniques for making bread with fully-developed flavor but, uh, they had to be made yesterday.

Planning ahead is necessary because any type of yeast bread can benefit greatly from a longer and slower fermentation. This mantra holds especially true for lean breads where flavor development depends heavily on small amounts of yeast and lots of patience.

If the main flavoring came from other sources, say spices, a bit of garlic, and maybe a sprinkling of chickpea flour, then a larger amount of yeast can be used to make the dough rise quickly. In this case, the yeast primarily acts as a leavener instead of flavor enhancer.

This seems to be the thinking behind the curry roll formula from Austrian baker Gerhard Ströck. These pungent garlic-laced buns are finished in about two hours if you skip the much-maligned “cool on a wire rack” step. Dinner rolls are much better fresh from the oven anyway.

recipe adapted from ichkoche.at (found via Ye Olde Bread Blogge)
Yeastspotting at Wild Yeast Blog

Gerhard Ströck’s Curry Rolls
Curryweckerl á la Ströck

makes 12 dinner rolls (approximately 2 3/4 to 3 ounces each)

Final Dough Formula:

Ingredients               Volume          Ounces          Grams
instant yeast                  4.5 tsp          .5           15
cold water                     1.5 cups
all-purpose flour              3.5 cups       15.5          440
white whole wheat flour        1.75 cups       7.75         220
chickpea flour                                 1.4           40
vegetable oil                  2 tbsp
yogurt                                         1             30
salt                                            .4           12
barley malt syrup                               .4           12
garlic, finely chopped                          .4           12
curry powder                                    .4           12

Notes:

• Google Translate can be very useful for recipes written in a foreign language but some things tend to get lost in translation. This interpretation of the formula worked quite nicely for me but I would definitely appreciate any corrections and suggestions.
• I replaced the 80 grams of cooked chickpeas in the original recipe with 40 grams of water and 40 grams of chickpea flour.
• Chickpea or garbanzo flour is also known as besan, chana, or gram flour in Indian groceries.
• I used garam masala as the curry powder. There are many different versions of this Indian spice blend. Mine is a mixture of finely ground cardamom seeds, cinnamon, cloves, black peppercorns, and nutmeg.

Final Dough Instructions:

Mix                   Dissolve the instant yeast in the water.
                      Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until
                      a rough ball is formed.

Knead                 8 to 10 minutes

kneaded curry roll dough

Rest                  20 minutes in a loosely covered container

Divide                12 pieces (approximately 90 to 95 grams each)

Shaping               Shape into rolls

shaped curry rolls

Final Proof           50 to 60 minutes

Preheat Oven          475ºF

Steam                 1 cup of boiling water poured in a heavy steam
                      pan (preferably cast iron)

Bake                  Immediately lower the temperature to 425ºF.
                      Bake for 20 minutes, rotating the rolls at the
                      halfway mark if necessary

This is a post from Apple Pie, Patis, and Pate
Gerhard Ströck’s Curry Rolls

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