Louise Cake With Plum And Coconut
Louise cake is an Ottolenghi twist on the New Zealand Louise slice. It is made with a coconut-based biscuit covered with juicy plums and topped with a lovely almond meringue.
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 10 1x
- Category: Cakes
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: New Zealand
Ingredients
Scale
For the cake:
- 4.4 oz (125 g) softened unsalted butter
- 1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons (100 g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 3 large egg yolks, room temperature
- 1 cup (125 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 pinch of salt
- 3 1/2 tablespoons (20 g) shredded coconut
- 1/3 cup (80 ml) whole milk, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 5-6 medium red plums
For the meringue:
- 2.8 oz (80 g) toasted flaked almonds
- 2/3 cup + 1 tablespoon (180 g) egg whites, room temperature (see note #1)
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 cup + 1 1/2 tablespoons (245 g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/3 teaspoons white wine vinegar
- 1 1/3 teaspoons cornflour
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Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 365°F (185°C). Butter and line the bottom and the sides of a round 9-inch (23 cm) springform pan with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, sift flour, baking powder, and salt using a flour sifter, and place aside. In a small separate bowl, mix the vanilla extract with milk.
- To make the biscuit, place softened butter, sugar, and lemon zest in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat at medium-high speed until the sugar and butter mixture is smooth.
- Add egg yolks, one at a time, and mix until combined. Add shredded coconut and mix well. Lower the mixer speed and gradually add the dry ingredients to the principal preparation, alternating with milk and vanilla mixture.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan and smooth the top with a spoon. Bake for 25 minutes. Check for doneness with a skewer or knife blade: the cake is ready if the skewer or the knife's blade inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan.
- Wash and dry plums. Divide each plum vertically in halves. Discard stones and then slice plum halves into four parts. You will get eight segments per plum and 40 segments in total.
- Increase oven heat to 390°F (200°C). Arrange plum pieces on top of the biscuit, close to each other, and cut side down. Don't overlap the fruit; otherwise, it will make the middle layer of the cake watery.
- To make the meringue, whisk egg whites and salt on medium-high speed for one minute until soft peaks. Gradually add sugar and whisk at high speed until the meringue becomes stiff and glossy.
- Add vanilla, vinegar, and cornflour and whisk again. Add toasted flaked almonds and gently mix with a rubber spatula.
- Distribute the meringue on top of the plums. Use a spatula to swirl the meringue to get rough waves, curls, and peaks.
- Bring the cake to the oven. Immediately lower the oven temperature to 355°F (180°C) and bake for 35 minutes until the meringue gets a slightly brown hard crust.
- Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool, still in the cake pan, for at least 30 minutes. Unmold the cake and peel the paper from the sides of the cake. Let the cake cool down completely before slicing.
Notes
- 180 g egg whites are approximately equal to 3 1/2 whole large chicken eggs (eggshell removed).
- For the best results, use a springform pan with a removable bottom to facilitate the removal of the baked cake. Or use an adjustable cake ring.
- Watch out for the color of the meringue crust while baking.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 374
- Sugar: 39.1 g
- Sodium: 157 mg
- Fat: 17.2 g
- Saturated Fat: 8 g
- Carbohydrates: 51.2 g
- Fiber: 1.7 g
- Protein: 6.8 g
- Cholesterol: 91 mg
Find it online: https://www.bakinglikeachef.com/louise-cake-yotam-ottolenghi/