Lemon & banana with chocolate chips cakes

Despite the creativity I have admired in many of the other bakers recipes, I chose to join in this month's challenge with the simple lemon and banana with chocolate chips cakes. Considering the minimum preparation time, the result was one of the worthiest so far, especially for the coconut-lemon flavored ones in whitch lemon zest but also juice gave them a perect sourness and moist and the cream cheese frosting added even more creaminess to the texture.

                       Lemon cakes (for 8 mini-sized)
                       220gr                                                               cake flour
                       120gr                                                               butter, room temperature
                       180gr                                                               granulated sugar
                       180gr (3 big)                                                    eggs
                       90gr                                                                 lemon juice
                       1tsp                                                                 baking powder
                       2                                                                     lemons (zest)
                       80gr                                                                cream cheese
                       1 Tbs                                                               powdered sugar
                       1 cup                                                               shredded coconut

Beat the butter with granulated sugar and zest until creamy and separately shift the flour and baking powder together. Add and beat the eggs in the butter, one at a time, pour in the lemon juice (90gr) and incorporate the dry ingredients. If not using silicone, butter and flour muffin-sized forms before filling and bake at a preheated oven to 180C for about 20min. For the frosting soften the cream cheese whisking in the powdered sugar and add the juice. Then spread a thin layer on each cake and cover completely with a coconut coating. Alternately drizzle some simple sugar glaze on top.

                 Banana and chocolate chips cakes (for 8 mini-sized)

                 90gr                                                                      butter, melted

                 200gr                                                                    granulated sugar

                 70gr                                                                      eggs

                 290gr (3bananas)                                                   banana puree

                 320gr                                                                    cake flour

                 80gr                                                                      milk

                120gr                                                                     chocolate chips

                5 Tbs                                                                     cold coffee

                4gr                                                                        baking powder

                4gr                                                                        baking soda

                pinch of                                                                cinnamon

Shift the dry ingredients together and mix the puree with eggs, milk, sugar, coffee, butter and chocolate. Then add the flour mixture and and whisk until combined. Fill equally 8 forms and bake at preheated oven to 180C for 20min. Let cool and optionally cover with melted chocolate. 



Chocolate tart with orange cream

                         Pate sablee
                         200gr                                                     flour
                         110gr                                                     butter
                         70gr                                                       powdered sugar
                         1                                                            small egg
                         as preferred                                           vanilla extract                                           

                         Chocolate filling
                         300gr                                                     chocolate
                         160gr                                                     light cream
                         50gr                                                       granulated sugar
                         30gr                                                       cointreau
                         2                                                            eggs

                         Orange cream
                         400gr                                                      orange juice
                         50gr                                                        yolks
                         1                                                             big egg
                         50gr                                                        granulated sugar
                         45gr                                                        butter
                         5gr                                                          gelatin, softened in cold water
                         1                                                             orange (zest)

For the tart crust beat butter with sugar until creamy, add the eggs with vanilla and whip to combine. Mix in the flour without much kneading, just until the dough comes together, and refridgerate for an hour. Then roll the dough with some flour and cover the bottom of a 24cm-diameter tart tin. Place a piece of aluminum foil on top, fill it with beans or rice and bake at a preheated oven to 180C for about 20min.

Meanwhile prepare the first filling by melting chocolate with the hot cream or by heating them in the microwave. Give a quick whisk to the eggs and mix the rest of the ingredients together. When the time comes, remove the half-baked crust from the oven taking off its bean topping and pour in the chocolate mixture. Cntinue baking at 170C for another 20min and set aside. In order to make the orange cream, follow a method similar to making creme anglaise and slightly whisk the eggs with the sugar.



Heat the juice with the zest until hot, and before it boils, temper with the half of it the egg mixture. Return to heat and stir continueously watching the temperature with a candy thermometer. As soon as it reaches 85C remove from heat, disolve in the gelatin and add the butter. Set aside until cool and then pour it over the chocolate. Finally refridgerate for a couple of hours or more and optionally serve with a caramelized sugar top.

Coffee and praline torte

                          Dacquoise
                          105gr                                                       whites
                           50gr                                                        granulated sugar
                           70gr                                                        almonds
                           40gr                                                        powdered sugar
                           15gr                                                        corn flour
                           10gr                                                        flour

                           Coffee bavaroise
                           290gr                                                      milk
                           125gr                                                      heavy cream
                           125gr                                                      heavy cream whipped to soft peaks
                            70gr                                                       coffee beans coarsely chopped
                            85gr                                                       granulated sugar
                            5                                                            yolks
                            8gr                                                         gelatin leaves

                           Praline bavaroise
                           130gr                                                      milk
                           130gr                                                      heavy cream
                           3gr                                                         yolks
                           25gr                                                       sugar
                           4gr                                                         gelatin leaves
                           250gr                                                      gianduja
                           195gr                                                      heavy cream whipped to soft peaks
                           as preferred                                            caramelized and chopped hazelnuts 

                           Cocoa glaze
                           65gr                                                        water
                           40gr                                                        cocoa
                           130gr                                                      sugar
                           85gr                                                        heavy cream
                           6gr                                                          gelatin sheats
                           as preferred                                            vanilla                        

The directions for the glaze are given in the ''Orange and chocolate -coffee torte'' and the cocoa gelee can be made much time in advance and kept refridgerated. Start with the dacquoise by shifting the flours and powdered sugar together. Beat the whites with the sugar until stiff and fold in the dry ingredients stirring gently with a spatula. Spread two 20cm-diameter circles of batter on parchement paper or silpat and bake at a preheated oven to 180C for 10-15min until the cake is lightly golden and springs back when touched. Set aside and prepare the coffee filling by warming milk with the first portion of heavy cream and the coffee beans in a saucepan. As soon as it boils remove from heat, pour it through a strainer to completely remove any coffee remainings and add some milk if necessary to get the 415gr of the mixture you began with. 

Then return it to heat, put the gelatin in cold water to soften and in a separate bowl whisk the yolks with sugar until just foamy. Before the milk starts boiling, temper with it the yolks whisking constantly and combine the mixtures in the saucepan over medium heat. Keep stirring and watch the rising temperature with a candy thermometer so that it doesn't exceed 85C. At this point where the cream has thicken, remove from heat, dissolve in the gelatin and set aside to cool. Meanwhile you can whip both the cream portions asked for each filling to soft peaks and keep in fridge. Proceed with the praline filling following the same procedure (as for anglaise) with milk, cream, sugar and eggs with the exception that you add the gianduja after incorporating the gelatin.

When both of the creams are just lukewarm, stir in the whipped cream and start constracting the cake. Place on the bottom of a 20cm-diameter ring the one dacquoise layer and spread half of the praline cream over it. Just drop the chopped hazelnuts on top and cover with the other cake layer. Fill with coffee bavaroise (you may keep some out) and finish with the rest of the praline cream. In order to avoid mixing of the two fillings or to have the one layer as a central piece (in this case of color contranst it won't really make a difference) , you can first put the coffee cream in a smaller form and chill it until just set. When you are done with the layers, chill the whole cake or refridgerate overnight and get the glaze ready to use either warming or cooling it to a slightly warm temperature. Then poure it at its proper consistency over the torte and refridgerate before decorating or serving.