Michele’s Holiday Cake

COOKING MONDAY TO FRIDAY SHOW #MF6629

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roast the almonds and hazelnuts separately
for about 10 to 15 minutes or until you get the aroma of roasted nuts.
Remove them from the oven. While hazelnuts are still hot, rub their skins
off between 2 kitchen towels. Lower the oven to 325 degrees.

In a food processor, grind the nuts together with the sugar until finely
chopped. Do not overprocess or they will turn oily. Fold 2 tablespoons of
flour into them and set aside.

Generously butter a nonstick jelly roll pan either 13 x 17 inches or 12 by
15 1/2 inches. Line the pan with silicone treated baking paper or
parchment.

Beat egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff and fold beaten egg whites
into the ground nut and sugar mixture along with remaining 2 tablespoons of
flour. Spread this on prepared baking pan and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or
until golden brown, crisp on top but still pliable.

Remove cake from oven and, using pot holders to protect your hands,
immediately turn pan upside down onto a clean kitchen towel. Let cake
settle for a few minutes and remove parchment paper. If cake breaks, don’t
despair; you can “glue” it back together later with icing.

When slightly cool, cut the cake into 4 long vertical strips, each about 3
inches wide and however long your baking pan was.

Yield: 16 servings

3 FILLINGS FOR MICHELE’S HOLIDAY CAKE : While chocolate is still warm, mix
it with 3/4 cup of heavy cream to form a “ganache”; refrigerate just until
cool enough to be of spreading consistency. In a mixing bowl combine
praline paste with remaining 1/4 cup of heavy cream and set aside.

Whip remaining cup of heavy cream with confectioner’s sugar and vanilla.

Assemble cake:

Set one strip of cake on a long board or platter. Set strips of waxed paper
underneath edges to catch any icing drips

Spread 1/3 of chocolate cream. Top with second layer of cake, spread with
plain vanilla whipped cream.

Spread third strip of cake with praline cream, then place it on top of
whipped cream layer.

Top with 4th strip of cake.

Refrigerate cake to firm it up before final icing

Frost top and sides of cake except for short ends. Decorate top by making
vertical lines or cross hatch marks on top of the cake with a knife or
tines of a fork.

Cut off a thin slice from each end to even up ends. Protect ends of cake
with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator until serving time Cut with
serrated knife.