Buttery Pistachio Cake With Cream Cheese Buttercream And Blackberry Compote Recipes

BUTTERY PISTACHIO CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE BUTTERCREAM AND BLACKBERRY COMPOTE

Steps:

• For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray three 8-inch cake pans with nonstick cooking spray.
• In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the sugar, pistachios, butter and salt on medium speed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in the vanilla.
• Add the flour and baking powder and mix on low speed until smooth. Pour into the prepared cake pans and bake until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 20 minutes. Cool the cakes in the pans on racks for 10 minutes, then invert onto the racks and cool completely.
• For the blackberry compote: Combine the blackberries, sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan. Bring to a boil over low heat. Let cool.
• For the buttercream: Combine the sugar and 3/4 cup of the water in a pot and bring to a boil. Combine the cornstarch with the remaining 1/4 cup water in a small bowl and add to the boiling sugar mixture. Combine the white chocolate chips and vanilla in a large heatproof bowl. Pour the boiling sugar mixture over the white chocolate chips and mix well. Let cool to room temperature.
• Pour the melted chocolate mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Add the butter and mix on low speed until incorporated, then mix on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the cream cheese and mix until combined.
• To assemble: Place a cake layer, top-side up, on a cardboard disc. Pipe a 1-inch border of buttercream around the top and fill in with 2 scoops of buttercream. Spread 1 scoop of blackberry compote evenly on top. Stack the second cake layer, top-side down and repeat with the buttercream and compote. Set the final cake layer, top-side down, on top. Frost the top and sides of the cake with buttercream.

PISTACHIO CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease and lightly flour three 9-inch cake pans.
• Pulse the pistachios in a food processor until ground up into very fine crumbs. See photo above for a visual. You'll have about 1 and 1/2 cups of crumbs. (If you have more than that, set aside for garnish.)
• Pour 1 and 1/2 cups of pistachio crumbs in a large bowl. Whisk in the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
• Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter and sugar together on high speed until smooth and creamy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Beat in the egg whites on high speed until combined, about 2 minutes. Beat in the sour cream, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients until just incorporated. With the mixer still running on low, pour in the milk (and the green food coloring, if using) and mix just until combined. You may need to whisk it all by hand to make sure there are no lumps at the bottom of the bowl. The batter will be slightly thick.
• Pour batter evenly into cake pans. Bake for around 21-23 minutes or until the cakes are baked through. To test for doneness, insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, it's done. Allow cakes to cool completely in the pans set on a wire rack. The cakes must be completely cool before frosting and assembling.
• Prepare the cream cheese frosting (see note below).
• Using a large serrated knife, slice a thin layer off the tops of the cakes to create a flat surface. Discard (or crumble over ice cream!). Place 1 cake layer on your cake stand, cake turntable, or serving plate. Evenly cover the top with frosting. Top with 2nd layer and evenly cover the top with more frosting. Top with the third cake layer. Spread the frosting all over the top and sides. (I used a bench scraper to smooth out the sides.) Decorate with garnishes, if desired. Refrigerate for at least 30-45 minutes before slicing. This helps the cake keep its shape when cutting.
• Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for 5 days.

PISTACHIO CREAM FILLING

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, combine sugar and water. Bring it to a boil over medium heat, stirring it constantly until sugar is completely dissolved. Then continue to cook until the syrup reaches 250°F (120°C), about 5 minutes.
• Simultaneously, start beating egg yolks in a mixing bowl with whisk attachment until it's doubled in size and becomes pale in color, about 2 minutes.
• While the mixer is running on low speed, slowly pour the hot syrup into the egg yolks. Pour the syrup into the side of the bowl, instead of the whisk, so that it doesn't splatter.
• Increase the speed to medium high, and beat the mixture until it cools down to 104°F (40°C). The mixture will become smooth and white.
• Stir in butter one tablespoon at a time.
• Then add pistachio paste and food coloring, if desired. Continue to beat the cream until nice and smooth.

ALMOND CAKE WITH KEY LIME BUTTERCREAM AND RASPBERRY COMPOTE

Steps:

• For the almond cake: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease two 8-inch round cake pans with butter and line with parchment.
• In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, fully combining before each addition. Keep mixing until light and pale. Add the almond meal and mix to combine.
• In another bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder to combine. Set aside.
• Combine the evaporated milk and almond liqueur. Set aside.
• With the mixer on low speed, alternate adding one-third of the flour mixture and one-half of the evaporated milk mixture to the creamed butter. Start and end with the flour, and do not overmix.
• With a hand mixer or stand mixer, whisk the egg whites in a clean bowl until stiff. Gently fold into the batter.
• Divide the batter between the prepared cake pans. Bake until the tops are golden and spring back when touched, 30 to 35 minutes.
• Let cool for about 5 minutes, then run a paring knife or mini offset spatula around the pans and unmold the cakes onto a rack. Let cool completely, 15 to 20 minutes.
• For the almond liqueur simple syrup: Whisk the water and sugar together in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Boil for 2 to 3 minutes, then turn off the burner and let cool for about 20 minutes
• Once cooled, stir in almond liqueur. Reserve.
• For the key lime buttercream: In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and cream cheese together until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Mix in the powdered sugar, one cup at a time, and then add the lime juice and zest. Scrape down the bowl and mix for another 5 minutes, until satiny and fluffy. Reserve.
• For the raspberry compote: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the raspberries, blackberries, sugar, water and lime juice. Cook until you can start to crush the berries with the back of a spoon, 5 to 10 minutes. Cook for another 5 minutes to thicken a bit. Remove from the heat and set aside.
• To assemble: Slice each cake horizontally into two equal layers. Place the first layer, cut-side up, on a cake board. Using a pastry brush, brush the surface with about 3 tablespoons of the almond syrup.
• Transfer the buttercream to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/4-inch round tip and pipe a border around the edge of the cake.
• With a mini offset spatula, spread a thin layer of buttercream in the center of the cake layer. Then, staying inside the piped border, spread a thin layer of the raspberry compote on top of the buttercream.
• Place another cake layer, cut-side up, on top. Repeat with the rest of the layers.
• To decorate the top of the cake: Pipe a border of buttercream beads around the edge and then spread with a thin layer of buttercream. Top with blackberries, raspberries, and white chocolate decorations if using. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, and enjoy.

BUTTERY PISTACHIO CAKE

Steps:

• Set oven to 350 degrees (second-lowest oven rack).
• Butter a 13 x 9-inch baking dish, line bottom with parchment paper, then dust with flour, shaking out any excess flour out of pan.
• Pulse the pistachio nuts in a food processor until finely ground (careful not to over-grind them into a paste).
• Add in 1 cup flour, baking powder, cardamom and salt; pulse one or two times to combine.
• In a cup whisk together the milk and vanilla.
• In a bowl beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until fluffy (about 4-5 minutes, this is important, must beat/mix for 4-5 minutes!).
• Add in eggs one at a time beating well after each addition.
• Alternately add in the pistachio/flour mixture and milk on low speed of mixer JUST until combined.
• Transfer the batter into prepared baking dish.
• Bake for about 20-22 minutes, or until cake tests done.
• Cool for about 10 minutes, then run a knife around edges of cake to loosen, invert onto a rack, or slice the cake from the pan.
• Serve warm or room temperature.