Rosella Ginger Pecan Torte Wedding Cake Recipes

GINGER-PECAN ROULADE WITH HONEY-GLAZED PECANS

Steps:

• Make cake layer:
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Line bottom and sides of a 15- by 10- by 1-inch jelly-roll pan with foil, dull side up, and brush with melted butter. Dust pan with flour, knocking out excess.
• Finely grind pecans with cake flour, cocoa, spices, and salt in a food processor. Beat together yolks, brown sugar, and molasses with an electric mixer at high speed until mixture is very thick and pale brown and forms a ribbon when beater is lifted, about 2 minutes with a standing model and 5 minutes with a hand-held.
• Fold in pecan mixture gently but thoroughly. Transfer 1 cup batter to another bowl and fold in 1/4 cup melted butter, then fold butter mixture into remaining batter gently but thoroughly.
• Beat whites with cleaned beaters in another bowl until they just hold soft peaks (do not overbeat). Stir one fourth of whites into batter to lighten, then fold in remaining whites gently but thoroughly.
• Spread batter evenly in jelly-roll pan and bake in middle of oven until set and firm to the touch, about 12 minutes. Cool in pan on a rack and cover with plastic wrap.
• Make filling:
• Beat cream with sugar until it just holds stiff peaks, then fold in 6 tablespoons crystallized ginger.
• Assemble roulade:
• Put an 18-inch length of foil on a work surface and sprinkle with some sugar. Invert cake onto foil sheet and gently peel off foil from top. Spoon three fourths of whipped cream over cake, leaving a 1/2-inch border around edges.
• Beginning with a short side and using foil as an aid, roll up cake, jelly-roll fashion, and transfer, seam side down, to a platter.
• Just before serving, spoon remaining whipped cream on top of roulade and sprinkle with honey-glazed pecans and remaining crystallized ginger.

GINGER-PECAN CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, with two racks in center. Line bottoms of three 8-by-2-inch buttered cake pans with parchment. Dust bottoms and sides with flour; tap out excess. Sift flour, baking powder, salt, and ground ginger into a medium bowl. Add ground pecans, and whisk to combine; set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add brown sugar until fluffy, 4 to 5 minutes. Drizzle in eggs, a little at a time, beating each time until batter is no longer slick, about 5 minutes; scrape down sides twice.
• With the mixer set on low, add flour mixture to sugar-butter mixture, alternating with milk, a little of each at a time, starting and ending with flour mixture; scrape down bowl twice. Beat in grated ginger and vanilla. Divide batter evenly among pans. Bake until a cake tester inserted into center of cakes comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes, rotating pans if necessary for even browning.
• Transfer pans to wire racks to cool, about 15 minutes. Remove cakes from pans, and return to wire racks, tops up; let cool.
• Meanwhile, place creme fraiche in a medium bowl, and whip with an electric hand mixer until soft peaks form. Add bourbon and confectioners' sugar; beat until soft peaks return. Cover, and refrigerate to firm, about 1 hour.
• To assemble cake, remove parchment from bottoms of cakes. Set aside prettiest layer; it will be used for top of cake. Place one layer on serving platter, and spread with half the creme-fraiche filling; repeat with second layer. Top cake with reserved third. Chill cake while icing is being prepared. Pour the icing onto the center point on the top of the cake, and let it flow down the sides. When the icing has set slightly, 5 to 10 minutes, arrange the pecan halves and crystallized ginger on the top. Serve.

BARBARA TROPP'S PECAN-GINGER TORTE

Steps:

• Lightly grease two 8-to-9-inch springform pans or two 9-to-10-inch tart pans with removable bottoms. Line the bottoms with greased paper. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
• Toast the four ounces of pecans for 15 minutes in the oven, rotating the tray once midway. Let cool.
• Mince the pecans with a sharp knife or with an on-off food processor motion, until fine but dry.
• Beat the egg yolks until light. Add the sugar gradually, until the yolks turn very creamy and form ribbons on the beater.
• Add the lemon juice, ginger juice and pepper. Beat to mix.
• Add the minced pecans and matzoh meal. Beat until blended.
• In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until they are blended. Add salt and continue whipping until the egg white forms firm peaks but are not dry.
• Lightly fold the egg whites into the nut mixture, until well blended.
• Divide the mixture between the two prepared pans.
• Sprinkle the crystallized ginger, glaceed apricots or kumquats evenly over the top. Space eight pecan halves around the edges of each tart, putting a ninth in the center.
• Bake in the middle or the bottom third of the oven for 40 to 45 minutes, until a cake tester in the center of the cake comes out dry.
• Let cool completely in pan. The cake tastes best baked a day in advance. Wrap air-tight overnight. Serve with a selection of seasonal berries. Or, if having a vegetarian seder, serve with Chantilly cream or Barbara Tropp's fresh ginger ice cream, the recipe for which is in ''The Modern Art of Chinese Cooking.''

PECAN TORTE

Steps:

• In a bowl, beat egg yolks and sugar until thick and lemon-colored, about 5-6 minutes. Combine pecans and bread crumbs; stir into yolk mixture with vanilla. In another bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form; fold into batter. Divide evenly among three greased and waxed paper-lined 9-in. round baking pans. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until cakes test done. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan; cool completely on a wire rack. For frosting, combine milk and cornstarch in a saucepan until well blended. Add chocolate chips. Cook and stir over medium heat until thickened. Cool to room temperature. In a bowl, cream butter and confectioners' sugar. Add vanilla and beat until smooth. Stir in chocolate mixture; beat until fluffy. Spread between cooled cake layers. Frost top and sides. Garnish with pecans if desired.

WEDDING CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan or a 10 inch Bunt pan.
• In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each. Then stir in the vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and baking powder, add to the creamed mixture and mix until all of the flour is absorbed. Finally, stir in the sour cream. Mix for 1 or 2 minutes just to be sure there are no lumps. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 45 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of cake comes out clean. For Bunt cakes, allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack.

PECAN TORTE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put egg yolks, granulated sugar, zest, vanilla, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until pale and thickened, about 4 minutes. Fold in pecans.
• Beat whites in a clean mixing bowl until stiff peaks form; fold into yolk mixture. Pour into a 10-inch springform pan.
• Bake until golden brown, about 1 hour (if top browns too quickly, tent with foil). Let cool on a wire rack 30 minutes. Remove sides of pan. Let cool completely. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Serve with curd and berries; garnish with zest.

GINGER-PECAN SCONES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425°. Line large baking sheet with parchment. Whisk flour, 2/3 cup sugar, baking powder, ground ginger, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and baking soda in large bowl. Add butter; using fingertips, blend butter into flour until coarse meal forms. Toss in pecans and 1/2 cup crystallized ginger. Whisk 1 cup buttermilk, grated ginger, and vanilla in measuring cup. Form well in center of dry ingredients. Add buttermilk; stir with fork until moist clumps form. Transfer to lightly floured surface. Knead just until dough comes together; divide in half. Form each half into 6 1/2-inch disk. Cut each disk into 6 wedges. Transfer to sheet. Brush with 1 1/2 tablespoons buttermilk. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon sugar and 3 tablespoons crystallized ginger; press to adhere.
• Bake scones until golden and toothpick inserted horizontally into center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool scones on sheet on rack.