Cherry and almond dacqoise layer cake (gluten-free)

You may or may not know that I make up some of these cakes or breads as I go, sometimes the recipe a success to save and cherish and sometimes a one shot thing, never to be repeated.

When they are extremely good you'll find them here.  Since it's cherry blossom season, a favorite time of mine, I wanted to add the blossoms to a cake and with a late birthday cake to make, here is the recipe of a happy success : a layered dacquoise with cherries and petals.  What I was aiming for : a several layer thick cake with thick swirls of cream on top. What I ended up with, because the white chocolate cream wasn't enough for the 4 layers, a naked cake with an entirely different light pink glaze, but oh so good! My family loves naked cakes anyway.

Here's what you'll need: 

Yoghurt and almond cake:

2 eggs, separated

1 plain or Greek yogurt

150 g flour (or gluten-free blend with xanthan gum)

30 g almond flour

80 g sugar

50 g butter, softened

3-4 tablespoons milk (if dough is too thick)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon almond extract

Preheat oven 170° C (350° F). Line a round pan with parchment paper. In a bowl, beat egg whites until stiff.  In another bowl, mix egg yolks, sugar, yogurt, butter, and almond extract. Add flour, almond flour and baking powder.  Dough shouldn't be too thick, if it is, add some milk.  Fold in egg whites.  Pour into pan and bake for 20-25 minutes or until the middle is firm.  Set aside to cool.  Once cool, cut in half to make 2 disks.

Dacquoise:

6 egg whites

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

150 almond flour

150 g confectioners sugar

20 g granulated sugar

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 packet vanilla sugar or vanilla extract

Preheat oven 225 degrees F / 110 C. Beat egg whites in a bowl until they form stiff peaks.  Fold in confectioners sugar, then almond flour.  Add other ingredients.  Use a pastry bag to pipe 2 concentric circles until you get two disks, or layer with a spatula like I did. Bake 35-40 minutes + 15 minutes with heat off and oven door ajar, or until exterior is crunchy.

White chocolate ganache (or buttercream):
150 g white chocolate
1 vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
20 cl of whipping cream

Heat up 10 cl of whipping cream and add vanilla.  Melt white chocolate and fold into warm cream.  Once completely blended together, add the rest of the cold whipping cream.  Allow to cool, refrigerate overnight.  Once it has cooled, whip up with a mixer first in slow then upgrade to high speed until fluffy, add a spoonful of cream to soften if necessary.

Cherry filling:

300 g fresh or frozen seedless cherries or in syrup

30 g sugar

1/4 cup kirsch or other liquor

Over medium heat, simmer (defrosted) cherries with ingredients about 5 minutes.  Set aside to cool.

Pink glaze:

125 g confectioners sugar

2-3 tablespoons milk

2 tablespoons cherry juice or preserves

Mix ingredients until you get a smooth paste. Adding more or less liquid gives you a thicker or thinner glaze.

Cherry blossom petals (optional) to decorate.  You can also use cherries or sugar confetti or candy.

For the layering : 

Take the bottom layer of the yogurt cake, cooked side down, cut side upright, spread 1/4 of white chocolate cream to the edges, add 1/3 of cherries avoiding too much syrup and repeat.  Then add two layers of dacquoises and repeat toppings.  The last layer is with a yogurt cake flat side, or cut side, facing up.  Add a thin layer of white chocolate on top of this last layer, so the glaze doesn't get too absorbed. Allow to cool in refrigerator about 1 hour. Drizzle glaze and add fruit or petals.

Enjoy, everyone !