Liz Lopez
D ESSER TS
Hazelnut Cake with Elderberry Poached Pear Pa s t r y C h e f Hea ther Guay, Lo s Pob la nos H is to r i c I n n & O r gani c Far m SERVES 8-10
Makes one 9-inch or 10-inch cake
To make the Hazelnut Paste: 250 grams (1.06 cups) sugar 75 grams (.32 cups) honey 100 (.42 cups) grams water 500 grams (2.11 cups) whole hazelnuts 50 grams (.21 cups) simple syrup 50 grams (.21 cups) butter Place the sugar, honey and water in a saucepan and bring to a strong boil. Place the hazelnuts in the food processor and grind until coarse. Remove the boiling sugar from the heat and pour into the food processor. Blend until as smooth as possible, may take 10 minutes or more. If the food processor is straining, add the simple syrup to the food processor. Mix in the butter at the end. Wrap the finished paste in plastic wrap and allow to cool. To make the Hazelnut Cake: 1 1/3 cups sugar 8 ounces hazelnut paste ¾, plus ¼ cup gluten-free flour 1½ teaspoons baking powder ¾ teaspoon salt 1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cubed 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 teaspoon almond extract 6 large eggs, at room temperature
Add the eggs one at a time, processing a bit before the next addition. (You may wish to open the machine and scrape the sides down to make sure the eggs are getting fully incorporated.) After you add all the eggs, the mixture may look curdled. Don’t worry; it’ll come back together after the next step. Add half the flour mixture and pulse the machine a few times, then add the rest, pulsing the machine until the dry ingredients are just incorporated, but do not overmix. (You can also transfer the batter to a bowl and mix the dry ingredients in, which ensures the dry ingredients get incorporated evenly and you don’t overbeat it.)
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 9- or 10inch cake or spring-form pan with butter, dust it with gluten-free flour and tap out any excess. Line the bottom of the pan with a round of parchment paper. In the bowl of a food processor, grind the sugar, hazelnut paste, and ¼ cup of flour until the almond paste is finely ground and the mixture resembles sand.
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In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining ¾-cup flour, baking powder and salt. Once the hazelnut paste is completely broken up, add the cubes of butter and the vanilla and almond extracts, then process until the batter is very smooth and fluffy.
Scrape the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake the cake for 45-60 minutes, or until the top is deep brown and feels set when you press in the center. Remove the cake from the oven and run a sharp or serrated knife around the perimeter, loosening the cake from the sides of the pan. Let the cake cool completely in the pan.
When the cake is cool, cut into slices, serve with a dollop of elderberry crème fraiche, half of a pear cut into slices, and a drizzle of elderberry syrup (see below). To make the Elderberry Poach Liquid: 1 quart elderberry syrup 1 bottle white wine Zest of 2 oranges, peeled 1 each vanilla bean Boil together. Poach pears until soft. To make the Elderberry Crème Fraiche: 8 ounces crème fraiche 1 ounce elderberry syrup Whip crème fraiche. Fold in syrup until mixed evenly.
Los Poblanos Historic Inn & Organic Farm, 4803 Rio Grande Blvd NW, Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, 505.344.9297. lospoblanos.com. JUNE 2020
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