candied

I may have fallen behind with posting for more than a week and even have gone quite far with improvisation but despite some mishaps (including underbaking the cake) and the final appearence that didn't exactly meet my expectations, I am overall really satisfied and happy to have taken this month's challenge. So a big thanks to Mandy for sharing the recipe and her perfectly illustrated instructions and I hope you enjoy this version (with also a small fat reduction) either in this or a less time-consuming construction.

Chocolate cake

25gr cocoa powder

80gr self-raising flour

70gr butter

40gr cream cheese

105gr sugar

2 eggs

40gr almond powder

0,5 tsp baking powder

as prefered vanilla

Orange cake

210gr self-raising flour

140gr butter

70gr cream cheese

190gr sugar

4 small eggs

80gr almond powder

1tsp baking powder

1 orange orange zest

Connective paste and frosting

100gr apricot jam

400gr chocolate

200gr water or strained orange juice

For a 26cmx7cmx7cm cake arrange a size-variable rectangle utensil at 27cmx21cm and cut two parchment paper cases measured 7cmx27cm and 14x27cm each. Remember to let a 7cm height on each dimension and after folding the paper into a three-dimensional rectangle form, place the cases in the pan. Starting with the recipe, beat the butter needed for both of the cakes with a hand mixer until fluffy and separate the quantity asked for the chocolate one in a different bowl. Add there the cream cheese and sugar and continue beating for a couple of minutes. Mix in the vanilla, eggs and almond powder and whisk until homogenous. Finally shift in the flour and baking powder and beat for the ingredients to come together.

Spread equally the batter in the smaller paper case and support the side that doesn't lean to the wall of the pan to avoid leakage in the other case. No needing to wash out the mixer attachments, beat the butter, cream cheese and sugar asked for the orange cake and then add eggs, almond and zest as previously. Finish with the flour and baking powder and pour the batter in the case left. Straighten its surface and bake at a preheated oven at 170-180C for 30-35min until the batter of both of the cakes in the center of the pan rises to a small peak. Removing from the oven test doneness with a toothpick and let the cakes cool completely.

Take a ruler and trim the sides of the cakes to get a 5cmx3cmx26cm piece for the chocolate and a 12cmx3cmx26cm piece for the orange one. From the first one cut 4 2cmx1cmx26cm and 5 1cmx1cmx26cm bars and from the other cut 8 3cmx1cmx26cm, 4 1cmx1cmx26cm and 4 1cmx1cmx26cm bars. Remember to use the chocolate frosting and not the jam for gluing together the bars that should show the overlap part of this pattern (as you can see in the image above I have quite messed up with the possition of the 3cmx1cmx26cm pieces in the upper right and lower left corner of the cake) .For the frosting make a ganache with the water and chocolate, use as much as is needed for bringing the pieces together and refrigerate the rest for a couple of hours until set. When ready, whip with a mixer at high speed for a few minutes to soften and add some volume to the mixture and spread the frosting on the sides and top of the cake.