Espresso Cake 

I should rename this cake, and call it the cake of trust. The COFFEE CAKE is a soft and fragrant dessert, perfect for breakfast and as a snack. It is prepared in a few minutes. It has a soft dough, without butter flavored with liquid espresso coffee. For a more fragrant and flavored version, you can enrich the dough with a teaspoon of soluble coffee powder. If you are lactose intolerant, you can use lactose-free milk. Instead, for a gluten-free version, just use a gluten-free flour. As an alternative to coffee, you can also use barley coffee. A coffee cake that you can simply sprinkle with icing sugar and serve for breakfast or you can fill it as if it were a sponge cake with the cream you like. 

I know I intrigued you: save the recipe and if you do not want to do it now because your cholesterol asks for mercy, you will prepare it in a few days! 

Coffee lovers – and confident approaches – roll up your sleeves!

Preparation: 45 minutes Cooking: 40 minutes Servings: 6 people

For the rich sponge cake:

3 large eggs

120 g sugar

1 pinch of salt

45 g espresso coffee

1 teaspoon instant coffee

20 g warm melted butter

95 g flour 

20 g cocoa

5 g of baking powder

For the syrup :

50 g water

30 g sugar

30 ml coffee

For the espresso cream:

2 egg whites

90 g sugar

120 g butter

30 g iced coffee

half a teaspoon of instant coffee

To start preparing the coffee cake with espresso cream, put a coffee maker of at least 4 cups on the fire, the coffee will then serve you for all three preparations. Heat the oven to 170°C. In the bowl of the stand mixer insert the eggs with the sugar, instant coffee and a pinch of salt, starting to whip at high speed for at least 6-8 minutes (alternatively obviously use an electric mixer!): when you have obtained a clear and fluffy mixture, insert the espresso coffee, then the melted butter and continue to work the mixture. Separately sift the cocoa with the flour and baking powder, insert into the mixture in a planetary mixer mixing with very few whiplash, then stop processing.

Pour the mixture into a hinged mold with a diameter of 18 cm, previously greased and floured or coated on the bottom and edges with baking paper, bake about 40-45 minutes carrying out the toothpick test before removing the cake. When cooked, place the cake pan on a wire rack to cool, then remove the ring and the base to cool the cake inside. Meanwhile, in a saucepan put the water with the sugar, bring to a boil until the sugar crystals dissolve, turn off the heat, incorporate the coffee and set aside. Dedicate yourself to the espresso cream – here is the proof of confidence! Remember that you will have to work with whips very, very very long, so having a planetary mixer is a good thing to have. If not, you will work your muscles! Cut the butter into cubes and leave it out of the refrigerator. In a bowl place the egg whites and sugar: heat in the microwave for 15 seconds, stir, heat again, and proceed in this way until the sugar is dissolved (you will not feel the lumps touching with your fingers) and the mixture is lukewarm, about 55 °C. Transfer it to the bowl of the stand mixer and start whipping at high speed for about 6-7 minutes, until you feel that the walls of the bowl are cold and a nice stable meringue has formed. Meanwhile, dissolve half a teaspoon of instant coffee in the coffee of the mocha. When the meringue has formed, start inserting a cube of butter at a time, working at high speed and without inserting the next until the previous one has not been merged: the meringue will disassemble, you go on serenely as described, continuing until you finish the butter. The consistency will appear lumpy, but it does not matter. At this point, always with active whisks, insert the coffee: the mixture will separate, or show very small lumps of butter immersed in a liquid substance, here is the moment of trust. Do not lose it and continue for another 8 minutes to work at maximum speed, initially nothing will happen but slowly you will see that the mixture will begin to return less separated and then take on an airy and creamy consistency. There we go! Leave it at room temperature and dedicate yourself to the assembly of the cake. Cut the cake into three discs of equal thickness, place the first disc on the serving plate, slightly wet the surface with the coffee syrup, spread a thin layer of espresso cream with the help of an elbow spatula. Overlap the second disc and proceed in the same way with the other two discs by putting a layer of generous cream on the surface, keeping some aside for decoration. Level the surface and with the spatula spread the edges well to make them smooth and uniform insert the little leftover cream in the pastry pocket with open star nozzle diameter 6 mm and create decorative tufts on the surface.

Sprinkle with very little bitter cocoa if you like, keep in the refrigerator and leave it at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving.

My recommendation

Make the cake and wet it the day before, keeping the first in the refrigerator well wrapped in food film and wet it in a clean glass plate. The next day you just have to make the cream and assemble the cake!