I will now post a recipe for a cake I made, but without a picture. *ghasp*
And it is not because the cake is not pretty: simply, when I cut it up and packaged to take to work, I did not have the presence of mind to take some photos.
I am sure I will be making another iteration of it, as the boyfriend did not try it, and I am positive he would like it. So there will be a photo opportunity yet.
The Donauwellen cake is a real classic of German and Austrian cuisine (and from what I am starting to understand, also many other cuisines), and the idea to make it came from a colleague at work. When he mentioned it, I had a bit of an “aha!” moment: it is such an obvious idea to make, but the idea of this cake does not show up in my internet bubble, heavily influenced by British and American websites. Note to self: adjust the Pinterest feed to lose all the raw-vegan-no bake-oreo-avocado desserts.
I will ask around the company a bit, to get some more ideas out of the box; in a recent keynote, the CEO mentioned we have 33 nationalities, and this sounds like a veritable treasure trove of potential bakes.
But for now, I give you Donauwellen cake.
For such a classic, I am embarrassed to say how difficult it was to find the appropriate recipe. The one I did find uses pastry cream out of a bag, and this is unacceptable in my kitchen. Also, you will notice that there is no designated size of a pan in the recipe: I guess the author assumes some knowledge of a canonical pan that I am unaware of.
The recipe below includes my modifications. Two notes about the chocolate topping: 1) one of my colleagues went crazy for it, and 2) it is part of the cake’s charm that the chocolate on top cracks as you cut it (source: the colleague who gave the cake idea).
Danube waves (Donauwellen)
Ingredients
Sponge layer
- 150 g butter
- 150 g sugar
- pinch of salt
- 4 eggs
- 150 g flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2 Tbsp cocoa powder
- can of cherries, drained and coated in flour1
Cream layer
- 1 quantity crème pâtissière, at room temperature
- 150 g butter, at room temperature
- 75 g powdered sugar
Chocolate layer
- 200 g dark chocolate
- 30 g coconut fat
cocoa powder, for dusting
Instructions
- Line a 23 cm square pan with baking paper. Heat the oven to 180˚C.
- To make the sponge layer, cream the butter with the sugar and a pinch of salt. Add the eggs one by one, mixing thoroughly between additions. Mix the flour with the baking powder and fold into the batter.
- Pour half of the batter in the prepared tin and spread it. Add the cocoa powder to the remaining half and mix thoroughly. Layer the dark mixture on top of the light one. Make a wave pattern with a fork to mix it up lightly.
- Distribute the coated cherries all over the top of the dough. Bake in the preheated oven for about 40 minutes. When a toothpick comes out clean, the cake is done.
- To make the cream layer, mix the powdered sugar with the butter. Fold the crème pâtissière one spoon at a time into the butter mixture. Spread the cream evenly on the cake. Refrigerate the cake, preferably over night.
- To make the chocolate layer, melt the chocolate and combine with the coconut fat. Spread over the cake and make a wave pattern with a fork. Refrigerate to harden the chocolate.
- Cut the cake in squares and dust with the cocoa powder.
- This prevents the cherries from sinking. Not thinking. Sinking.