Almond Praline Cake With Mascarpone Frosting and Chocolate Bark
- Ready In:
- 49hrs
- Ingredients:
- 19
- Yields:
-
1 cake
- Serves:
- 12
ingredients
-
Ganache filling
- 1 1⁄4 cups heavy whipping cream
- 3 tablespoons packed dark brown sugar
- 10 ounces chopped semisweet chocolate, chopped
-
almond cake
- 1 1⁄2 cups cake flour
- 2 1⁄4 teaspoons baking powder
- 3⁄4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 3⁄4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 3 (7 ounce) packages almond paste
- 7 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 3⁄4 teaspoons almond extract
-
Almond praline
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 cups whole almonds, toasted
-
Mascarpone frosting
- 1.5 (8 ounce) containers mascarpone, cheese**
- 1 1⁄2 cups chilled heavy whipping cream
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
-
Chocolate bark
- 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
directions
-
For ganache filling:
- Simmer cream and sugar in medium saucepan, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add chocolate; whisk until smooth. Chill until just spreadable, about 6 hours.
-
For almond cake:
- Preheat oven to 350°F Butter three 9-inch-diameter cake pans with 1 1/2-inch-high sides. Line bottoms with parchment paper; dust pans with flour. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in bowl. Using heavy-duty mixer, blend brown sugar and butter in large bowl. Beat in almond paste 1 piece at a time, then beat until smooth. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in extracts. Fold in dry ingredients. Divide batter among pans; smooth tops. Bake cakes until tester inserted into centers comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool cakes in pans on rack.
-
For almond praline:
- Line baking sheet with foil. Stir sugar and 1/4 cup water in heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat; boil without stirring until deep amber, swirling pan and brushing down sides with wet pastry brush occasionally. Mix in nuts. Pour onto foil; cool. Peel foil off praline. Chop praline coarsely. DO AHEAD Praline can be made 1 day ahead; store airtight at room temperature.
-
For mascarpone frosting:
- Beat all ingredients in large bowl just to soft peaks (do not overbeat or mixture will curdle).
- Run knife around pan sides to loosen cakes. Turn cakes out; peel off paper. Place 1 cake layer on platter. Spread half of ganache over; sprinkle with 1/4 cup praline. Top with second cake layer. Spread remaining ganache over; sprinkle with 1/4 cup praline. Top with third cake layer. Spread frosting over top and sides of cake. DO AHEAD Cake can be made 1 day ahead; cover with cake dome and chill. Store remaining praline airtight at room temperature.
-
For chocolate bark:
- Line baking sheet with foil. Melt chocolate in small bowl set over saucepan of simmering water. Stir until smooth. Remove from over water. Drizzle all but 1 tablespoon chocolate over foil in thick (about 1-inch-wide) zigzag lines (chocolate will pool in spots). Sprinkle 3 tablespoons praline over chocolate; chill bark until firm, about 1 hour.
- Press praline around bottom 2 inches of cake; sprinkle more atop. Peel foil off bark; break into pieces. Press edges into frosting atop cake. Remelt 1 tablespoon chocolate over simmering water, stirring often. Using spoon, drizzle chocolate over cake. DO AHEAD Chill up to 4 hours. Serve cold or at room temperature.
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Reviews
-
My Favorite cake of all time (so far!) This is actually the second time I made it . The first time was a couple of years ago for the ladies I worked with at the time. They went ape**** over it and always talked about it. This cake does not have to take soooo long. I have taken some short cuts that I will share....1) I bought the sugar coated nuts(praline) from the grocery store from the open bins 2) I had to use almond butter instead of almond paste as it is only seasonal where I live and actually works out bettter because it mixes easier. I made a 12 inch one tier cake because there wasn't enough cake mixture for 3 9-inch pans. I would double the recipee. I would like the ganache to be 2 or 3 times the amount to make that layer thick and I would make the praline mixture a lot thicker as well...maybe not grind down the praline as much and double the amount of praline.The eggs,almond butter and praline mixture are what make this cake a little bit of a splurge. I usually make this for Special Occasions. Not as hard as it looks !