White Chocolate Shortcakes With Raspberries Recipes

Steps:

• For cake: Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease bottoms of 12-inch, 9-inch and 4-inch round pans and line them with parchment or wax paper. Sift together flour and baking powder. Set aside. Cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. Set aside. Beat egg whites until stiff, but not dry. Set aside.
• With mixer at low speed, alternately add flour and milk to butter. Beat in vanilla. Gently fold in egg whites and pour into prepared pans. Bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.
• For mousse: Melt white chocolate in double boiler or very carefully in microwave. Cool. Whip cream until soft peaks form. On low speed, pour in cooled, melted white chocolate.
• For buttercream: Cream together shortening and butter. Add vanilla. Gradually add sugar 1 cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides often. Add milk and beat at medium speed.
• To assemble: Spread raspberries over both the 12-inch and 9-inch layers of prepared cake. Top each with raspberries, approximately 1/2-inches apart. Place 9-inch cake layer on top of 12-inch layer. Place 4-inch layer on very top. Decorate with buttercream.
• The recipes for this program, which were provided by contributors and guests who may not be professional chefs, have not been tested in the Food Network's kitchens. Therefore, the Food Network cannot attest to the accuracy of any of the recipes.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Grease and line the base of 2 x 20cm round, loose-bottomed cake tins. Put the butter and chocolate in a heatproof mixing bowl, set over a pan of barely simmering water and allow to melt slowly, stirring occasionally.
• When the butter and chocolate have melted, remove from the heat and allow to cool for 1-2 mins, then beat in the eggs and sugar with an electric whisk. Fold in the flour and raspberries.
• Gently pour the mixture into the tins and bake for 20-25 mins or until golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean (the raspberries may leave a residue on the skewer, so don't be fooled by their juiciness). Remove the cakes from the oven and allow to cool in the tins for 10 mins before turning out onto a wire rack.
• To make the ganache, put the chocolate in a heatproof bowl with 100ml of the cream, set over a pan of barely simmering water. Stir until the chocolate has melted into the cream and you are left with a smooth, glossy ganache. Leave the ganache to cool to room temperature, then beat in the rest of the cream.
• When the cakes have cooled, sandwich them together with the chocolate ganache. Dust with icing sugar just before serving.

Steps:

• To prepare shortcakes, heat oven to 400 degrees. Oil bottom of each cup in a 12-cup muffin pan. In a mixing bowl, combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and sugar. Using a pastry blender or an electric mixer, or working by hand, cut in the butter until mixture resembles damp sand. In a separate bowl, whisk together egg, sour cream, vanilla and honey. Add to flour mixture, and stir until thoroughly blended.
• Put a scant 1/4 cup dough into each muffin cup. (Do not use muffin papers.) Bake until risen and firm on top, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove from heat, and allow to cool. Then remove from pan, and cool completely. Place 6 shortcakes in an airtight freezer bag, and freeze for another use.
• To prepare filling for 6 shortcakes, whip heavy cream with 2 teaspoons confectioners' sugar until thick but still soft. Add 1/2 cup raspberries to cream, mashing them roughly with a fork.
• Split each shortcake in half horizontally, and place a dollop of raspberry cream onto bottom half. Add a portion of whole raspberries, and put the top back on at an angle. Sprinkle a dusting of the remaining 1 teaspoon confectioners' sugar over shortcakes, and serve.

Steps:

• Prepare pastry cream: Puree raspberries in a blender. Strain to remove seeds. Set aside pulp; you should have 1 cup.
• Whisk egg yolks, sugar, flour, and cornstarch in a bowl until completely smooth.
• Warm cream in a small saucepan over low heat until just hot enough to steam. Once steaming, add 1/2 of it to the egg mixture, whisking constantly to avoid scrambling the eggs. Add that mixture back into the hot cream mixture and continue to heat and stir until custard is very thick, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the reserved raspberry pulp. Let sit until cooled to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Place parchment or waxed paper over the surface to prevent a skin from forming and refrigerate, 8 hours to overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease the sides and bottoms of two 9-inch round, metal or glass cake pans.
• Prepare cake: Blend cake mix, water, oil, and eggs in a large bowl at low speed until moistened, about 30 seconds. Beat at medium speed for 2 minutes. Pour batter into the prepared pans.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 23 to 28 minutes. Cool in the pans on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Remove cakes from the pans and cool completely, about 15 to 20 more minutes.
• Prepare the frosting: Beat butter and confectioners' sugar in a large bowl on medium speed until creamy. Beat in melted white chocolate. Add vanilla and beat on low speed, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl, until light and fluffy. Transfer to a piping bag fitted with a #18 star tip.
• Level the tops of the cooled cake layers with a large serrated knife. Pipe a small amount of frosting onto the center of a serving plate. Put one layer, cut-side down, on the plate. Pipe a thick ring around the top edge of that layer; this will keep the filling in the cake and prevent the layers from sliding. Spread raspberry pastry cream onto the cake. Place to remaining layer, cut-side down, on top. Frost the top and sides with remaining frosting, decorating as desired.
• Hold white chocolate bar in one hand with a paper towel (to stop it from melting in your hand). Use a vegetable peeler and slowly and carefully shave along the length of the bar to form pretty curls. Put chocolate curls on the sides of the cake and place raspberries in a ring around the top edge.