Best Dessert
EMILY TORGAN-SHALANSKY
1st
Mascarpone Cake with Mango Sauce
This cake is Torgan-Shalansky’s version of a recipe her grandmother, who had emigrated from Poland to Honduras, used.
INGREDIENTS
Best Dessert
First Runner~ Up
LAYNE MAYER, VANESSA WEINER, AMY ORTH
DarkChocolateDipped Macaroons These are a sophisticated version of the contestants’ favorite Passover dessert.
Cake 2 cups sifted cake flour (not self-rising) 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 stick unsalted butter 1 cup sugar 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla 2 eggs 1 cup buttermilk
Mascarpone Cream 8 oz. mascarpone 1 cup chilled heavy cream 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
Dona Ana's Mango Sauce 3 large ripe mangoes sugar lime juice
PREPARATION Cake • Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch round cake pan
(2 inches deep). Line bottom with round of parchment paper, then butter parchment. • Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda & salt. • Beat together butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until fluffy and pale. Beat in vanilla. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. With mixer on low, beat in buttermilk until just combined. Add flour mixture in 3 batches, mixing after each addition until just combined. • Pour batter into cake pan, smoothing top. • Rap on counter to get rid of air bubbles. • Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool in pan on a rack for 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edges of the pan to loosen the cake, then invert it onto plate. Remove and discard paper.
Mascarpone Cream
Beat mascarpone, cream and sugar in a large bowl until mixture holds stiff peaks
Assembly Halve cake horizontally with a long serrated knife. Remove top half. Put bottom half on plate and spread with half of cream. Put top half on, then spread with remainder of cream. Serve with sauce alongside.
Dona Ana's Mango Sauce
14 14
Peel and pit mangoes. Put flesh into a blender with about 1 tablespoon of lime juice and two tablespoons of sugar.
INGREDIENTS 5 large egg whites 1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise 3/4 cup -1 cup sugar (depends how sweet you want them)
4 cups long-shred unsweetened coconut (about 6 ounces), lightly toasted 3/4 cup slivered almonds, toasted, cooled, ground
12 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
PREPARATION • Preheat oven to 275°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with
parchment paper. Place egg whites in large bowl; scrape in seeds from vanilla bean. Using electric mixer, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. • Gradually add sugar, beating until meringue is very thick
(similar to marshmallow crème), about 5 minutes. Fold in coconut, then almonds. Drop batter by rounded tablespoonfuls onto prepared sheets, spacing mounds 1 1/2 inches apart. • Bake macaroons until pale beige outside and dry-looking
(insides will still be soft), about 25 minutes. Transfer baking sheets to racks; cool macaroons completely. Transfer macaroons to work surface; re-line pans with clean parchment. • Place chocolate in top of double boiler over simmering water. Stir chocolate until smooth; remove from over water. Dip bottom of 1 macaroon into melted chocolate to depth of 1/4 inch. Place on prepared sheet, chocolate side down. Repeat dipping with remaining macaroons. Chill until chocolate is firm, about 1 hour. These can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and keep refrigerated. Let macaroons stand at room temperature 1 hour before serving. Makes roughly 4-5 dozens.