It is always fun trying new recipes and new methods of making things that I have made in the past.  Recently, an opportunity to experiment with a recipe for chiffon cake that came from a famous celebrity chef came my way and I was all over it!  The recipe is called Earl Grey Chiffon Mini Cake.

 

This recipe is from Anna Olson, Food Network Star and it is called:  Earl Grey Chiffon Cake with Maple Meringue.  As part of the inaugural launch of Anna’s newest book called, “Back to Baking”, the Food Network gave everyone the opportunity to try to make Anna’s recipe and send in a photo of their version.  This is mine.  I had fun with it.

I have had the pleasure of having this lovely chiffon cake once before made by The London Chef in Victoria, B.C. when Anna Olson spent an intimate evening with 18 lucky people.  My husband and I were part of this lucky group.

This is the first time I have made this cake.  I followed Anna’s recipe without making adjustments.  It is a different method from what I have used in the past for chiffon cakes.  It is a lovely method.   I wanted individual portions rather than a large cake (there are only two of us!), so decided to try some small oval ovenproof ramekins.  They turned out great!  They only took 15 minutes in my oven.  If you are using small ramekins (4 or 5 oz), this recipe will make 12 small ramekins.  Give some of these baby chiffon cakes away or freeze them for later.

I made the irresistible maple meringue (like having maple marshmallows) and then slathered it on top of the entire mini cake and fluffed into peaks with a small palette knife to look like a little hedgehog.  Since I do not own a brûlée torch, I put the dessert under the broiler for nano-seconds! (one or two or three – watch carefully!)  This recipe for Earl Grey Chiffon Mini Cake with Maple Meringue is a showstopper dessert

The compote shown in the photo was made using ingredients from my daughter’s gardens:  fresh cherries and rhubarb.  What a lovely dessert enjoyed by all.  Thank you, Anna, for a wonderful recipe.

Try it yourself!  Here’s the recipe from her latest book:  “Back to Baking”.

I highly recommend it!

EARL GREY CHIFFON MINI CAKE with MAPLE MERINGUE

Makes one 10-inch tube cake
Serves 16 to 20

INGREDIENTS:

For the Chiffon Cake:

• 2  Earl Grey tea bags
• ¾ cup  boiling water
• 8  egg whites at room temperature
• ½ tsp  cream of tartar
• 2 ¼ cups pastry flour
• 1 ½ cups sugar
• 2 ½ tsp  baking powder
• ¼ tsp  salt
• ½ cup  vegetable oil
• 5  egg yolks
• 1 tsp  vanilla extract
• 1 tsp  finely grated lemon zest
• 3 oz  milk chocolate, chopped and melted

For the Maple Meringue:

• 2  egg whites at room temperature
• ½ tsp  cream of tartar
• 2 Tbsp  sugar
• ¾ cup  pure maple syrup

METHOD:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 °F.  Keep a 10-inch tube pan ungreased.
2. Steep the tea bags in the boiling water, until the water cools to room temperature.  Remove the bags, without squeezing out excess liquid, then top up the water to its original ¾ cup measure.
3. Whip the whites with the cream of tar until foamy, then add ¼ cup of the sugar and continue whipping until the whites hold a medium peak.  Set aside.
4. Sift the flour, the remaining 1 ¼ cups of the sugar, the baking powder, and salt into a large bowl or into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment.  Add the cooled tea, the vegetable oil, egg yolks, vanilla and lemon zest.
5. Whip this mixture on high until it is thick, about 4 minutes.
6. Add the melted milk chocolate and whip in on low speed.
7. Fold in half of the whipped egg whites by hand until they are incorporated, then fold in the remaining whites (the batter will be quite fluid).
8. Bake the cake for 50 to 55 minutes, until the top of the cake springs back when gently pressed.  Invert the cake pan onto a cooling rack and cool the cake upside down in its pan.
9. To extract the cake, run a spatula or knife around the outside edge of the cake, then tap the cake out onto a plate.
10. To prepare the maple meringue, whip the egg whites with the cream of tartar until foamy, then add the sugar and whip the whites just to a soft peak.
11. Bring the maple syrup to a boil and cook uncovered and without stirring until it reaches a temperature of 242° F (softball stage) on a candy thermometer.
12. While beating on medium speed, carefully pour the maple syrup into the meringue by pouring it down the side of the bowl (this will help prevent splashing of hot syrup) and continue whipping until the mixture has cooled but is not quite room temperature, about 3 minutes.  Stir in vanilla.
13. Use a spatula to spread the meringue over the entire surface of the cake (use a small spatula or butter knife to frost the cake inside the centre hole.
14. Store the cake at room temperature until ready to serve and only cover with plastic wrap the interior cake once cut.

LEARNING TIPS:  

Please CLICK the link above to access my UrbnSpice LEARNING TIPS, which are listed alphabetically on the Learning Tips blog post under the following subheadings:

• Cream
• Meringues
• Oven Temperature Accuracy
• Vanilla Extract
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You Might Also Like:

Cherry Rhubarb Compote 

Anna always says, “what grows together, goes together!”  That is the case with the compote.  I hope you give this Earl Grey Chiffon Mini Cake a try.

How is your garden growing?  What has inspired you from your garden into your kitchen?

Happy Baking!

Denise Pare-Watson

The UrbnSpice Chef