Raffaello style Cake
Course: Cake, Deserts, FeaturedDiving into the world of desserts, the Raffaello style cake stands out not just for its heavenly flavor but also for its intricate making process and nutritional insights. Originating as a tribute to the popular Raffaello confectionery, this cake is a blend of almond, coconut, and white chocolate flavors that harmoniously come together to create a masterpiece. It’s like a hug for your soul, but in the form of a cake!
Let’s talk calories and health benefits. Given its rich ingredients like white chocolate, Mascarpone cheese, and coconut oil, this cake is definitely on the indulgent side of the spectrum. However, it does bring some nutritional pluses to the table. Almonds, for instance, are packed with healthy fats, fiber, and protein. Coconut, not to be outdone, adds a burst of medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) known for their energy-boosting properties.
Historically, the concept of combining almonds, coconut, and chocolate dates back to the early 20th century, though the exact origins are as mysterious as the cake is delicious. What’s certain is that this combination has been pleasing palates for decades, evolving into today’s beloved cake form.
The creation process involves a dance of precise steps – from beating egg whites to stiff peaks, ensuring the cake’s fluffiness, to the meticulous preparation of the coconut cream that requires hours of cooling for the perfect consistency. And let’s not forget the crunchy filling – a delightful mix of toasted almonds, crispy wafer, and melted white chocolate that adds a surprise texture with every bite.
Assembling this cake is like conducting an orchestra, where every layer of sponge, cream, and crunchy filling plays its part to perfection. The final decoration, a snow-like dusting of coconut shavings or actual Raffaello confections, is the cherry on top, making the cake not just a treat for the palate but a feast for the eyes.
In summary, while this cake might be a bit of a project, the end result is a stunning, delicious masterpiece that’s sure to impress. It’s a celebration of flavors and textures that, despite its calorie count, offers some nutritional benefits, making it a worthy occasional treat.
Let’s talk calories and health benefits. Given its rich ingredients like white chocolate, Mascarpone cheese, and coconut oil, this cake is definitely on the indulgent side of the spectrum. However, it does bring some nutritional pluses to the table. Almonds, for instance, are packed with healthy fats, fiber, and protein. Coconut, not to be outdone, adds a burst of medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) known for their energy-boosting properties.
Historically, the concept of combining almonds, coconut, and chocolate dates back to the early 20th century, though the exact origins are as mysterious as the cake is delicious. What’s certain is that this combination has been pleasing palates for decades, evolving into today’s beloved cake form.
The creation process involves a dance of precise steps – from beating egg whites to stiff peaks, ensuring the cake’s fluffiness, to the meticulous preparation of the coconut cream that requires hours of cooling for the perfect consistency. And let’s not forget the crunchy filling – a delightful mix of toasted almonds, crispy wafer, and melted white chocolate that adds a surprise texture with every bite.
Assembling this cake is like conducting an orchestra, where every layer of sponge, cream, and crunchy filling plays its part to perfection. The final decoration, a snow-like dusting of coconut shavings or actual Raffaello confections, is the cherry on top, making the cake not just a treat for the palate but a feast for the eyes.
In summary, while this cake might be a bit of a project, the end result is a stunning, delicious masterpiece that’s sure to impress. It’s a celebration of flavors and textures that, despite its calorie count, offers some nutritional benefits, making it a worthy occasional treat.
Ingredients
- Ingredients for the crust
3 eggs
75 g (2.7 oz) almond flour or ground almonds
30 g (1.1 oz) coconut shavings
30 g (1.1 oz) melted coconut oil
1 tsp baking powder
10 g (0.35 oz) vanilla sugar
110 g (3.92 oz) flour
120 g (4.3 oz) sugar
- Ingredients for coconut cream
200 g (7.1 oz) white chocolate
40 g (1.4 oz) coconut shavings
380 g (13.6 oz) 33% cream
500 g Mascarpone cheese
10 g (0.36 oz) vanilla sugar
- Ingredients for the crunchy filling
70 g (2.5 oz) Chopped almonds
30 g (1.1 oz) coconut shavings
30 g (1.1 oz) crispy wafer
80 g (2.85 oz) white chocolate
20 g (0.7 oz) butter
Directions
- Preparation of the crust:
- Separate the whites from the yolks. Place the whites in one mixing bowl and the yolks in another.
- Now add most of the sugar and vanilla sugar to egg whites, the rest of sugar should be added to the yolks.
- Beat the whites with a mixer until stiff peaks (around 5 minutes). Also beat the yolks until they become lightened in color, it will take about 2 minutes.
- Add the melted coconut oil to the yolks and beat again with the mixer.
- Now add the almond flour or ground almonds to the yolks. Mix with a whisk until smooth.
- In a new bowl, mix the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder and coconut shavings.
- Now combine the dry ingredients with the egg whites mixture. It is advisable to add the dry ingredients in small portions to avoid lumps and egg whites settling.
- Do not use a mixer this time, otherwise the egg whites will settle. Gently stir the mixture from the edges to the center using a spatula or spoon.
- Now add the egg yolk mixture to the egg white mixture and mix gently with a spatula until smooth.
- Take a mold, line the bottom with foil or baking paper. Pour the batter in the mold.
- Bake the cake in a preheated oven for 45-50 minutes at 180 degrees C° (350 F). Check the readiness with a toothpick by piercing the cake in the center, the toothpick should come out dry. When ready, do not take the biscuit out of the mold immediately, let it rest for half an hour.
- Then take the cake out of the mold and wrap it in cling film. Put it in the refrigerator until it cools down completely.
- Preparing the cream and filling
- Heat the cream in the microwave until hot, but do not bring it to a boil. Then add the coconut shavings and stir. Cover the container with a lid and leave it for 2 hours. This is necessary for the cream to soak up the smell of coconut shavings.
- While the cream is soaking, let’s prepare the crunchy filling.
- Melt the white chocolate using a water bath. My way is to put the chocolate in a pastry bag and place it in boiling water. Within 5-7 minutes, the chocolate will melt completely.
- Meanwhile, toast the almonds and coconut shavings until golden. You can prepare them in a frying pan or like me on a baking tray. A tip: do it separately because the coconut will brown very quickly and the almonds take longer to toast.
- In a large bowl, combine the crispy wafer, toasted almonds and coconut shavings with the melted white chocolate and melted butter. Stir the mixture well to make sure the chocolate coats each piece of waffle. Don’t stir for too long though, we need to keep the crunchy texture.
- To achieve this, place a layer of the crispy filling on a cutting board or silicone mat and immediately place in the freezer for an hour.
- Once the filling has hardened, take a knife and cut it into small pieces. Then pour the filling into a plate and place in the freezer again.
- Now back to the cream. It has been resting for two hours and now you need to strain it through a sieve to remove the coconut shavings.
Try to squeeze the coconut shavings well, to remove as much cream from them as possible. These shavings have given all of their flavor to the cream and we won’t need them anymore.
- Heat the cream again until hot and mix it with the white chocolate. To make the chocolate dissolve into the cream faster, stir constantly with a spoon.
- When all the chocolate is dissolved and the mass becomes homogeneous, cover it tightly with food film and put it in the refrigerator for 6-8 hours until completely cooled.
- When the chocolate mixture has cooled completely, add it to a large bowl and mix in the Mascarpone cheese and vanilla sugar. Beat the mixture to sturdy peaks for about 3-4 minutes.
- For the crust soaking, mix together the coconut milk and sugar. If you don’t have coconut milk, you can replace it with water or regular milk.
- Assembling the cake
- Carefully slice the sponge cake into 3 equal layers.
- Place the first layer on a plate or base on which you will serve the cake. Soak it in the coconut soak. Place a layer of cream on top, leaving some space in the center for the crunchy filling. I assemble the cake in a split ring, but it’s not required. This way the geometry just turn out better.
- Place the filling in the cream cavity.
- Without putting on the structure, top the second layer of cake with a thin layer of cream.
- Now place it, but with the cream side down so that it sticks to the crispy filling below.
- Soak it with coconut soak on top, then do the same thing we did with the first layer. Spread the cream, then add the filling. Then, coat the third layer with a thin layer of cream like the second one and place it also with the cream side down to connect with the filling below.
- Soak the third cake on top of the coconut soak and cover the whole cake with the remaining cream. Then it is time to decorate the cake with coconut shavings and/or original Raffaello’s.
- This cake is complicated to do, but tastes amazingly. Besides, looks how aesthetically pleasing it is!
