Hortansa cake with walnuts and yolk cream

Name: Hortansa cake with walnuts and yolk cream
Ingredients: 10 egg whites; 1/8 teaspoon salt; 300 g sugar; 300 g ground walnuts; 4 level tablespoons flour; 1 teaspoon baker’s ammonia; 10 egg yolks; 300 g sugar; 1 tablespoon cornstarch; 250 ml milk; 250 g butter with over 80% fat; 4 tablespoons sugar; 30 g walnuts; 1 teaspoon oil

Dessert - Hortansa cake with walnuts and yolk cream by Renata M. - Recipia

Hortansa cake has three thin walnut meringue layers, yolk cream and caramelized krantz, a nut brittle. The cream goes between the layers, the krantz stays on top, and the name comes from our wedding godfather’s mother, who gave us the recipe. I leave the krantz in small crumbs rather than grinding it to a powder. Preparation: 50 minutes. Cooking: 43 minutes. Resting: 12 hours. Total time: 13 hours and 33 minutes. Servings: 24. Approximately 310 kcal and 5 g protein per serving.

Ingredients

For the layers

10 egg whites
1/8 teaspoon salt
300 g sugar
300 g ground walnuts
4 level tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon baker’s ammonia

For the cream

10 egg yolks
300 g sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
250 ml milk
250 g butter with over 80% fat

For the krantz

4 tablespoons sugar
30 g walnuts
1 teaspoon oil

Preparation

1. Heat the oven to 180°C and line a 24 × 36 cm baking pan with parchment paper. Beat the egg whites with 1/8 teaspoon salt until stiff, then gradually add 300 g sugar and beat until you have a firm meringue. 2. Gently fold in the ground walnuts for the layers, the flour and the baker’s ammonia. Divide the batter into three equal portions and bake the layers one at a time for 10 minutes each, until lightly browned. 3. Leave the layers to cool, then carefully loosen them from the paper with a wide-bladed knife. 4. Put the egg yolks and 300 g sugar in a double-bottomed saucepan and beat. Add the starch, then gradually pour in the milk, stirring. Cook over medium heat for about 8 minutes, stirring constantly, until the cream thickens. 5. Leave the yolk cream to cool. Beat the butter at room temperature, then gradually beat in the cream. 6. Caramelize the 4 tablespoons sugar in a frying pan for about 5 minutes, until amber-colored. Add the walnuts for the krantz and stir. Turn out onto an oiled board, spread into a thin layer and leave to cool, then chop in a food processor. 7. Line the pan you baked the layers in with plastic wrap. Add the first layer, spread on some of the cream, add the second layer and more cream, then add the last layer and the remaining cream. Sprinkle with the chopped krantz and leave the cake to chill until the next day. 8. Cut the cake into 24 pieces.

Notes

Serve with black tea, with nothing else alongside. Finely ground walnuts fold more evenly into the meringue; if you have coarse pieces, run them through the food processor once more. A 24 × 36 cm pan makes thin layers, while a smaller pan makes thicker layers that may need to bake longer. I choose walnuts that don’t smell rancid. The cake keeps covered in the fridge for up to 3 days and can be assembled a day ahead.