Chocolate Hazelnut Meringue Torte Recipes

Steps:

• In a small bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, 5-7 minutes. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture alternately with sour cream and coffee. Beat just until combined., Pour into 2 greased and floured 6-in. round baking pans. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely., For frosting, in a small saucepan, melt chocolate with cream and sugar over low heat; stir until smooth. Remove from the heat; whisk in Nutella. Transfer to a small bowl; cover and refrigerate until frosting reaches spreading consistency, stirring occasionally. , Spread frosting between layers and over top and sides of cake. Garnish with chocolate curls and hazelnuts if desired.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Draw two 8-inch circles on a sheet of parchment paper and place it on a sheet pan, pencil side down.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites, cream of tartar, and salt on high speed for one minute, until frothy. With the mixer on high, slowly add the 2/3 cups sugar and 1 teaspoon of the vanilla and beat on high for 2 minutes, until it makes firm, glossy peaks.
• Divide the meringue between the two circles and spread into two flat 8-inch disks with a rubber spatula. Bake the meringues for one hour, turn the heat off, and leave the meringues in the oven for 2 hours. Remove them from the oven and allow to cool completely to room temperature on the sheet pan.
• With a large flat spatula, carefully transfer one disk, rounded side up, to a totally flat serving plate. (It's okay if the top cracks a little.) Spread the chocolate pecan filling evenly on top. Place the second meringue, rounded side up, on top.
• Combine the heavy cream, the 2 tablespoons sugar, and the remaining 1 teaspoon of vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat on high speed until it forms firm peaks. Spread the whipped cream on top of the torte. Decorate with the shaved chocolate and refrigerate for 2 hours or for up to a day and serve cold.
• In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade, process the pecans until finely ground. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl set over a pan of simmering water, whisk the eggs, sugar, and cornstarch together, making sure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water. Whisk the mixture almost constantly, until it is 130 to 140 degrees and thickened like custard. Set aside to cool to room temperature, whisking occasionally.
• Set another bowl over the pan of simmering water, making sure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water. Put the chocolate and espresso in the bowl and heat just until the chocolate melts, stirring occasionally. Stir in the Kahlua and vanilla and set aside to cool to room temperature. Whisk the chocolate mixture into the egg mixture, then whisk in the butter, one tablespoon at a time, whisking until smooth. Stir in the pecans. The filling can sit at room temperature for up to 4 hours.

Steps:

• Make torte:
• In a metal bowl set over a pan of barely simmering water melt chocolate, stirring until smooth, and cool.
• Spread hazelnuts in a shallow baking pan and toast in oven until they begin to turn pale golden, 7 to 10 minutes. Cool hazelnuts completely. Discard any hazelnut skins that rub off easily and transfer nuts to food processor. Add 3 tablespoons sugar and grind mixture fine.
• In a large bowl with an electric mixer beat together butter and remaining 2/3 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Add yolks, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, and beat in vanilla, salt, and melted chocolate. Beat in hazelnut mixture until combined well.
• In another large bowl with cleaned beaters beat whites with a pinch salt until they just hold stiff peaks. Whisk about one-fourth whites into chocolate mixture to lighten and fold in remaining whites gently but thoroughly. Spread batter evenly in springform pan and bake in middle of oven 45 to 55 minutes, or until a tester comes out with crumbs adhering. Cool torte completely in pan on a rack and remove side of pan. Invert torte onto a serving plate and discard wax paper.
• Make glaze:
• Put chocolate in a small metal bowl. In a small saucepan bring cream to a boil and pour over chocolate. Stir glaze just until completely smooth and let stand until thickened slightly, about 20 minutes.
• Spread glaze evenly over top and side of torte. With a small icing spatula or butter knife make parallel lines through glaze across top to create a design. Garnish top and bottom edge of torte with chopped hazelnuts and let torte stand until glaze is set, about 2 hours.
• Serve torte with whipped cream or ice cream.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Combine flour and baking powder; add to creamed mixture alternately with milk, beating well after each addition. Pour into 3 parchment-lined 9-in. round baking pans; set aside., In a large bowl, beat egg whites on medium speed until foamy. Gradually beat in sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, on high until stiff glossy peaks form and sugar is dissolved. Add vanilla. Fold in 1/2 cup walnuts. Spread meringue evenly over cake batter; sprinkle with remaining walnuts. , Bake at 325° for 30-35 minutes or until meringue is lightly browned. Cool on wire racks for 10 minutes (meringue will crack). Loosen edges of cakes from pans with a knife. Using 2 large spatulas, carefully remove 1 cake to a serving plate, meringue side up. Carefully remove remaining cakes, meringue side up, to wire racks. , In a large bowl, beat cream until it begins to thicken. Gradually add confectioners' sugar; beat until stiff peaks form. Carefully spread half the filling over cake on serving plate; top with half the raspberries. Repeat layers. Top with remaining cake. Store in the refrigerator.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-by-3-inch springform pan. Line bottom with parchment. Butter parchment, and sprinkle with flour; tap out excess. Set aside.
• Spread hazelnuts in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. Toast until fragrant and skins start to crack, 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven; rub vigorously with a clean kitchen towel to take off skins. Let cool; roughly chop. Set aside.
• Make cake batter: In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and brown sugar until pale and smooth. Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition, until mixture is light and fluffy. Add melted chocolate, vanilla, and rum, if using; beat until combined. Set aside.
• In a clean mixer bowl, combine 6 egg whites and salt; using the whisk attachment, beat on high speed until soft peaks form, about 2 minutes. Stir one-third of the egg whites into chocolate mixture. Fold in remaining beaten egg whites just until combined. Pour batter into prepared pan, and bake 25 minutes.
• Meanwhile, make meringue: Combine hazelnuts, chopped chocolate, and cornstarch in a small bowl, and set aside. Place remaining 4 egg whites and cream of tartar in a clean mixer bowl; using a clean whisk attachment, beat on high speed until frothy. With mixer running, slowly add superfine sugar; continue beating until stiff peaks form, about 8 minutes. Fold in hazelnut mixture.
• Remove cake from oven. Using an offset spatula, spread meringue mixture on top of cake, and return to oven. Bake until meringue is lightly browned and crisp, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack; let stand 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the cake to loosen, and release sides of pan. Let cool, about 30 minutes, before slicing and serving.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 190C/170C fan/gas 5. Butter and line the bases and sides of 2 x 20cm springform tins with baking parchment. Grind the hazelnuts and icing sugar in a food processor until fine. Whisk the egg whites until stiff, add half the caster sugar and whisk again until stiff, then repeat with the rest of the caster sugar. Fold in the vanilla, vinegar and ground nut mixture until well combined. Divide the mixture between the tins and bake for 25-30 mins until the tops are firm to the touch. Remove and cool in the tins on a wire rack. The meringues are very fragile and may crack a little, but don't worry.
• While the meringues cool, make the chocolate cream. Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of barely simmering water, then remove from the heat. Leave to cool slightly, then stir in the cream and leave to set in a cool place.
• Carefully remove the cooled meringues from the tins and put one layer onto a serving plate. Lightly crush half of the berries with a fork. Using a palette knife, spread half the chocolate cream over the meringue and spoon over the berries. Top with the remaining layer, then ice with chocolate cream and decorate with remaining berries. Chill until serving.

Steps:

• Cake:.
• Preheat oven to 180c (170C fan forced).
• First, prepare the nuts. Place the hazelnuts on a baking tray and bake at 180C for exactly 8 minutes (set a timer so you don't burn them).
• Remove nuts from oven, wrap in a tea towel and then rub firmly to remove as much skin as possible. You may have to do this a couple of times and rub stubborn ones between your fingers. Don't fuss too much if some skin won't come off - just get rid of as much of the loose papery stuff as possible.
• Put skinned and roasted hazelnuts into a food processor and chop roughly. Place nuts into a medium mixing bowl.
• Now break up the chocolate and place it in the food processor and chop roughly. Don't worry if it's not evenly chopped, some will be like grated chocolate, and you'll have some larger bits. That's fine. Just don't overchop it. Add chocolate to nuts in mixing bowl.
• Cut dates in half then process in a food processor until finely chopped, but be careful not to pulverise them to mush. Add dates to mixing bowl.
• Using your hands or a spoon, mix nuts, chocolate and dates well.
• Now, spray a 22-24cm (9") springform tin with spray oil and line base and sides with silicone paper. Paper should come 2.5cm-5cm (an inch or two) over the top of the tin.
• In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat egg whites until soft peaks form, then add sugar, 1 tablespoon a time, beating after each addition, until all the sugar is used. Continue beating until mixture is stiff and glossy.
• Note: If you don't have a large mixer, it's a good idea to divide the egg whites and sugar in half and beat each half in a different medium sized bowl.
• Using a spatula, gently fold date, hazelnut and chocolate mixture into the egg whites until well combined.
• Spoon mixture evenly into prepared tin, smooth top and bake on the centre shelf of the oven at 180C (170C fan forced) for 50 minutes.
• After 50 minutes, turn off oven, but DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN DOOR! Leave the cake in the oven overnight (or at least for several hours until the oven is completely cold) without opening the door.
• The next morning, you can remove the cake from the oven and decorate it just before serving.
• Ganache:.
• It's best to make the chocolate ganache the day before too. Simply bring the cream to a boil, remove from the heat, add the chopped chocolate and stir until chocolate is melted. Pour into small bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.
• The next day, remove the ganache from the refrigerator and sit on the kitchen bench until it comes back to room temperature (this will take at least 2 hours).
• Decoration:.
• Just before serving, remove cake from springform tin onto a serving plate.
• Add sugar and vanilla to whipping cream and beat with electric mixer until thick.
• Spread whipped cream over the top of the cake.
• Spoon room temperature ganache into a piping bag with a large star nozzle fitted.
• Pipe rosettes around the perimeter of the cake and one large rosette in the centre.
• Remove stems from strawberries and cut strawberries in half.
• Pile strawberries (or berries of your choice) onto the top of the cake.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 120C/100C fan/gas 1. For the meringues, whisk the egg whites with the lemon juice until soft peaks form. Add the caster sugar and continue whisking until stiff, add the icing sugar and ground nuts, then gently fold through until evenly combined. Line a baking tray with baking paper and pipe or spoon out rounds of meringue into 7cm discs. Bake for 1½-2 hrs until crisp outside but still soft in the centre. Leave to cool. You need 3 rounds per person. Leftovers can be kept in an airtight container for about 1 week.
• To make the hazelnut praline, warm a small heavy-based pan over a medium heat and cook the caster sugar until it melts and turns a rich caramel colour. Carefully swirl the hazelnuts around the pan (be careful, the sugar is very hot) and allow them to caramelise and brown - about 2 mins. Pour the mixture out onto a tray lined with baking paper. Leave to cool.
• Make the chocolate sauce by heating together 75ml water, the caster sugar and cocoa powder until boiling. Pour over the chocolate and whisk well until smooth.
• To serve, whisk the cream until soft peaks form. Finely chop the cooled praline by hand or in a food processor. Stir most of it through the whipped cream, setting a little aside. Place a meringue disc on each plate and top with a little of the cream. Add another disc, more cream, followed by the final disc. Top with icing sugar, cocoa powder and some of the reserved chopped praline, then spoon around some chocolate sauce