Zuccotto
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- Yield Serves 10 to 12
Ingredients
For the Syrup:
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup framboise or other raspberry liqueur (If omitting liqueur, substitute 1/4 cup water)
For the Filling:
- 2 cups chilled heavy cream
- 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
For the Filling & Topping:
- 4 ounces hazelnuts, plus more for garnish
- 4 ounces coarsely chopped chocolate-covered toffee bars, such as Skor or Heath, plus more for garnish
- 1 pint raspberries, plus more for garnish
For the Topping:
Directions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place hazelnuts in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet; toast until skins begin to split, about 10 minutes. Rub warm nuts vigorously with a clean kitchen towel to remove skins. Return to baking sheet; toast until fragrant and golden brown, about 1 minute more. Cool; coarsely chop. Set aside.
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In a small saucepan, combine sugar, water, and liqueur if using. Bring to a boil; stir until sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat; set aside to cool completely. Line a 9-by-5-inch domed metal or glass bowl with plastic wrap.
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Cut rectangular sponge cake into thirds crosswise and lengthwise, making 9 rectangles. Reserve round sponge cake layer to use on top. Cut each rectangle diagonally in half, forming 18 triangles. Brush both sides of each triangle with some syrup. Line inside of bowl with triangle slices, pointed ends facing bottom of bowl, to form a sunburst pattern. Fit slices snugly so bowl is completely lined. Use small pieces of syrup-brushed cake to fill in gaps. Trim the cake top to make it even. Transfer lined bowl to refrigerator.
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Place cream and confectioners' sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium until stiff, about 3 minutes. Gently fold in reserved nuts, toffee, and raspberries. Remove lined bowl from refrigerator, fill with cream mixture, and cover top with cake round. This will become bottom of zuccotto when unmolded. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate 12 hours or overnight.
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Place a wire rack on top of bowl, and invert zuccotto onto rack. Place on a rimmed baking sheet. Remove bowl and plastic wrap. Using a ladle, pour ganache over top of dome, letting excess drip down sides onto rack. Make sure to coat entire surface of the zuccotto. Cut into wedges. Ladle with creme anglaise. Serve immediately, garnished
with chopped toffee, nuts, and berries.
We made this for our 2012 Christmas Cake -- it was fantastic! I highly recommend it! The presentation makes the recipe look difficult, but the instructions are spot-on. As long as you use all the correct pan sizes, this should turn out as promised. We made this exactly according to the recipe, but may make some seasonal variations now that we know what a fun dessert this is.
This has become my go to recipe when I need a showstopper dessert. I add more toffee candy and raspberries than called for in the recipe. This is a multi step recipe so allow plenty of time for it. The combination of textures and flavors are amazing and it never fails to get rave reviews. Definitely worth the effort.
How big does the sponge cake need to be? Is 9" ok?
Does anyone know if the gaunache can be poured on a couple of hours early and then placed in the refrigerator until serving time?
I had a tough time with the sponge cake- the recipe link on here is for a 9" so I doubled it and made that plus a 13x9. I still needed more sponge cake to line the bowl so it had holes and lines in it. It didn't look pretty but tasted great. Also the ganache never set for me so next time i'll use less cream and a little more chocolate.
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/vanilla-sponge-cake
Here is an easier link to connnect to.
Below is link to printable version. I am going to try for Xmas too. Good luck!
http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.aced15a43a1d10e59...
Can someone send me the Vanilla Sponge Cake recipe? There is no link above. I tried to find it under the Recipe Finder, but the link there does not work. I would really like to make this for Christmas.
I had make these cake several times, and my daughter just asked me to make it again for her birthday.
Yes it is little time consuming but I make the pastry one day and next day I make the filling and finish the cake. It is excellent,
I made this for my husband's birthday one year and everybody loved it. It was a little time consuming, but definitely worth it.