A Taste of Vienna: Sachertorte

While on my travels through Europe, bakeries were of course my number one priority (as exciting as beautiful Cathedrals and historical sites are, let's be real.  Indulging and tasting any sweet I can get my hands on will forever be the most exciting travel activity in my book). Poland and Prague definitely had some delicious desserts, but none even came close to those in Vienna. Apricots, apparently, are a favorite there. 

My obsession started when I tried an ice cream ball at a famous Viennese ice cream parlor, called  "eis-marillenknodel." Don't ask me to pronounce it, because I absolutely cannot.  This vanilla ball of ice cream has an apricot marmalade center and is rolled in crushed hazelnuts. The tart marmalade works so incredibly well with the sweetness of the vanilla ice cream and heaviness of the hazelnuts. Needless to say, this marked the beginning of my long-lasting apricot kick.

My next dessert adventure in Vienna was technically more of a mission. I was willing to skip out on museums and tours to get my hands on a slice of the infamous Sachertorte. This cake dates back to the early 1800s with 16-year old Franz Sacher who created a soft fluffy cake with apricot jam under the icing. Demand continued to spread for this wonderful cake, and is claimed to be the most popular cake to date! After reading this, I could not live with myself if I didn't have a slice while in Vienna... and I was absolutely NOT disappointed. I would have to say it was love at first bite (okay-cheesy, but true). 

I have made this cake twice now, and it definitely takes some practice to finesse. A couple pointers: make sure the cake is ABSOLUTELY level. As I had very limited baking supplies, my final products definitely didn't look as 'pretty' as I had hoped. Regardless, the cake tasted absolutely amazing both times and is still the only chocolate cake I've ever made from scratch that doesn't dry out while baking.

The website I got the recipe for the cake off of features an extremely helpful how-to video which I would recommend watching. This cake is all about technique and making sure the ingredients are mixed properly. Bring this to any social gathering and I guarantee anyone with a right brain will agree it's the best chocolate cake they've ever had. Just a note, though. Definitely make it ahead of time and allow for lots of time for cooling. The cake has to sit between many of the steps  and rushing the process will probably not create the best results. 

Sound like a dream? Nope- it's real. 

Sachertorte

Recipe credit (cake): Epicurious

For the Cake:

• 4 1/2 ounces high-quality bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
• 9 tablespoons (1 stick plus 1 tablespoon) unsalted butter, at cool room temperature
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 6 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup all-purpose flour (spoon gently into cup and level top)

For the Apricot Glaze:
1 1/4 cups apricot preserves
2 tablespoons golden rum or water


For the Chocolate Glaze:
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp heavy cream
150 grams semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
4 tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature

1. To make the torte: Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 400°F. Lightly butter a 9-inch springform pan and line the bottom with a round of parchment or wax paper. Dust the sides of the pan with flour and tap out the excess.
2. In the top part of a double boiler over very hot, but not simmering, water, or in a microwave at medium power, melt the chocolate. Remove from the heat or the oven, and let stand, stirring often, until cool.
3. Beat the butter in the bowl of a eavy-duty standing mixer fitted with the paddle blade on medium-high speed until smooth, about 1 inute. On low speed, beat in the confectioners' sugar. Return the speed to medium-high and beat until light in color and texture, about 2 minutes. Beat in the egg yolks, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Beat in the chocolate and vanilla.
4. Beat the egg whites and granulated sugar in a large bowl with a handheld electric mixer on high speed just until they form soft, shiny peaks. Do not overbeat. Stir about one fourth of the beaten whites into the chocolate mixture to lighten it, then fold in the remaining whites, leaving a few visible wisps of whites. Sift half of the flour over the chocolate mixture, and fold in with a large balloon whisk or rubber spatula. Repeat with the remaining flour.
5. Spread evenly in the pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes. (The cake will dome in the center.) Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove the sides of the pan, and invert the cake onto the rack. Remove the paper and reinvert on another rack to turn right side up. Cool completely.
6. To assemble: Using a long serrated knife, trim the top of the cake to make it level. Cut the cake horizontally into two equal layers.
7. Prepare the apricot glaze by combining the apricot marmalade and rum in a small saucepan and heat on medium heat until bubbling. Remove from heat and let sit for 3 minutes.  Place one cake layer on an 8-inch cardboard round. Brush the top of the cake layer with the apricot glaze. Place the second cake layer on top and brush again. Brush the top and sides of the cake with the remaining glaze. Transfer the cake to a wire rack placed over a jelly-roll pan lined with waxed paper. Let cool until the glaze is set.
8. Time to make the chocolate frosting. In a small saucepan, bring the heavy cream to a boil and immediately remove from the heat. Cool to 190ºF / 88ºC and immediately pour over the chopped chocolate. Let rest for about a minute. Using a rubber spatula, stir gently. 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. Begin to pour over the center of the cake, slowly adding to the sides until covered. Do not move the glaze around once it has started to cool and set.

9. Once the chocolate is covering the cake, let sit for at least 2 hours (or until the frosting has set) before serving. Serving suggested with fresh made whipped cream.