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Nami-nami: a food blog about cooking and eating in Estonia and beyond
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Estonian recipes: Cocoa Cake with Sour Cream (Krsupea)
This popped into my mailbox yesterday:
Manu has left a new comment on your post "Tapas, Estonian style":
Hi,
My name is Manu and I`m looking for a estonian cake recipe... the problem is I don`t know the cake`s name, but it is a chocolate cake,with peaces of sponge cake with french cream.
Do you know any thing similar???
I just love this cake, I will be so thankful if you could help me.
Thanks!!!
After a moment of confusion, it hit me - Krsupea, which translates as (someone with) curly hair, though "microphone hair" wouldn't be all wrong either! It's an ever-popular cake on children's birthdays, and I've made it for my two nephews on countless occasions. I don't know the exact origins of the cake, but it's been popular in Estonia since late 1980s or so.
Estonian cocoa and sour cream cake
(Krsupea)
Serves about 16
The sponge cakes:
4 large eggs
340 g caster sugar (400 ml)
360 g all-purpose flour (600 ml)
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
400 g sour cream
ALSO:
3 Tbsp cocoa powder
Cream:
1 kg sour cream
Glaze:
100 g butter
2 Tbsp fresh cream
3 Tbsp caster sugar
2 Tbsp cocoa powder
Preheat the oven to 180 C / 350 F. Line a small baking sheet (a Swiss roll tin is excellent) with a parchment paper, and line a 24 cm springform tin also with parchment paper.
Whisk the eggs, sugar, flour, soda and sour cream until combined. Quickly pour about 2/3 of the mixture onto a small baking sheet.
Now add the cocoa powder to the rest of the mixture, and then pour that into the lined round cake tin.
Place both of the baking tins into the oven and bake for about 25 minutes, until golden brown (test for doneness with a toothpick - it should come out clean).
Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack.
Place the dark cake on a cake tray, spread with a thick layer of sour cream.
Cut the light cake into large cubes, then mix gently with the rest of the sour cream - you don't want to break up the cake cubes. Pile that mixture of cake cubes and sour cream on top of the cocoa base - whether you want a dome or something flatter, is up to you.
To make the glaze, gently melt the butter, pour in the cream, cocoa and sugar. Stir until smooth and then drizzle over the cake. (This is the traditional "chocolate glaze" of the 1980s and 1990s, when proper chocolate was hard to come by. Feel free to substitute with proper melted chocolate glaze).
Leave to stand in the fridge or cool place for about 12 hours before serving.
Estonian recipes: Alexander cake (Aleksandrikook)
Alexander cake, March 2011, dyed with sea-buckthorn juice concentrate
I'm dedicating February to various Estonian recipes, so if you've travelled to Estonia and want a specific recipe or two, let me know. Aleksandrikook aka Alexander cake has been requested here on Nami-Nami on several occasions, so it's about time to listen to my dear readers and post a recipe :)
To start with, Alexander cake is not actually Estonian in its origin, even though it's rather popular here and found in many traditional coffee and pastry shops. Our Nordic neighbours, Finns, claim the cake as their own. But then I've even come across recipes for Alexander cake in Latvian cookbooks, so it's popular in all over the North-Eastern corner of Europe.
Apparently its history goes back to 1814 or 1818, depending on your sources, when Alexander I of Russia, the reigning czar, visited Helsinki, and was served this concoction on his birthday. The cake is mentioned in Kullo manor's ledger books from 1819-1821. By 1850s, the cakes were sold in Caf Ekberg (they still are, gorgeously pink in colour and sandwiched with apple spread).
In principle, it's a simple cake. Two layers of shorcrust pastry, sandwiched with thick raspberry (or other) jam, and topped with simple icing. However, as one talented Estonian food blogger has written somewhere, it's actually a tricky cake to do well. First, it's important not to overmix the pastry, as it won't have the right texture. It's important to roll out the pastry evenly, as otherwise it won't bake evenly. To lift one cake layer on top of the other is tricky as well - if you're unlucky, it'll break apart. If you're making this in a cafeteria, then you'll need to cut perfectly even-sized rectangles, and the glaze needs to be pretty and pink (or cocoa-brown, if you're opting for the cocoa glaze).
NOTE: this should be baked and put together a day before serving, otherwise it'll be too dry and crumbly!
Alexander cake, September 2009, dyed with fresh black aronia juice and white chocolate
I've included some links to Estonian and Finnish foodbloggers that have written about the cake - you'll find them at the end of this post.
Alexander cake
(Aleksandrikook)
Cuts into 12 rectangles
Alexander cake, March 2011, dyed with sea-buckthorn juice concentrate
Pastry layers:
125 g caster sugar (150 ml)
300 g all-purpose flour (500 ml, about 2 cups)
1 tsp baking powder
200 g butter, at room temperature
1 egg
Filling:
250 ml (1 cup) thick raspberry jam
Glaze:
250 g icing sugar/confectioners sugar (about 400 ml)
3-4 Tbsp raspberry or black aronia juice
Make the pastry by mixing all dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add the butter, and using your fingers for mixing, mix until you've got large crumbs. Add the egg and quickly mix the pastry until it comes together.
Take a parchment paper that fits your baking sheet. Place the pastry on top of the paper and using a slightly floured rolling pin, roll the pastry to fit the baking sheet.
Bake in a preheated 175C/350F oven until dry and light golden brown (about 20 minutes).
Take out from the oven, and cut into two even-sized rectangles (the final cake will be half the size of your baking sheet). Cool lightly.*
Spread the jam over one shortcake base. Then very carefully lift the other shortcake layer on top of the one covered with jam.
Cut into squares (but don't separate the pieces) and leave to cool completely.
Make the glaze by mixing some colourful juice into the icing sugar until you've got a runny sugar glaze. Pour and spread that over the cake pieces and leave to set.
* Note that there is an alternative way of baking this cake - you'll sandwich two shortcake layers together with jam BEFORE baking (obviously you'll need to bake it a bit longer then). I've never tried this version.
Alexander cake, March 2011, dyed with sea-buckthorn juice concentrate
Fancy more? Here are some links to other foodbloggers' posts about Alexander cake - these give you a good idea about the different ways of glazing the cake.
ESTONIAN BLOGGERS:
Aniitram (a classic cocoa frosting and white frosting, zigzag pattern), MARU (Estonian designer and food writer), Qsti, Ragne, Liina, Sille
FINNISH BLOGGERS:
Kinuskikissa (one of the most popular Finnish foodbloggers, she used a cappuccino-flavoured glaze), Jaana
LATVIAN BLOGGERS:
Zitinja
Tattie scones recipe to mark The Bard's 253rd birth anniversary
Scots across the world (both true and honorary, like me) are celebrating Rabbie Burns' aka The Bards 253rd birth anniversary today. I've already ordered a sheep's pluck and will be making my own haggis over the weekend (yay! for the first time!), but today I made something less exotic - tattie scones. Tattie scones or potato pancakes are the Scottish equivalent of Jewish latkes and Norwegian lefses, and one of my fondest breakfast memories from Scotland (those of you who are new to Nami-Nami and are wondering about the Scottish connection: I spent seven years studying and working in the beautiful capital of Scotland, Edinburgh, returning to my dear homeland in October 2006. That definitely makes me an honorary Scotswoman, I think :)).
Tattie scones are brilliantly easy to make. You can use freshly boiled potatoes, leftover potato mash or even cold cooked potatoes. I've tried them all; the ones I made earlier today were from cold boiled potatoes ('tatties' in Scottish).
Tattie Scones
(oti kartulipannkoogid)
Serves two to four
250 g (cooked) potatoes
25 g (about 2 Tbsp) butter
60 g (100 ml or 7 level Tbsp) all-purpose flour
0.5 tsp fine salt
0.25 tsp baking powder
oil or butter for frying
If you're using uncooked potatoes, then peel and cut into chunks, then boil in lightly salted water until done. Drain thoroughly, then mash and mix with rest of the ingredients.
If you're using cooked cold potatoes, then grate them finely, knead in the softened butter and then add the dry ingredients and mix until combined. The dough should be soft and pliable.
Divide into two and form each into a round disk. Working with one dough disc at the time, roll it on a lightly floured surface into a flat pancake, about 5-7 mm thick. Cut into sectors (I usually cut into four large sectors or 6 to 8 smaller ones).
Heat a heavy frying pan to medium-hot, add some oil or butter. Transfer the tattie scones onto the frying pan and gently fry on both sides, until golden brown spots form (that'll take about 3 minutes on both sides, depending on your frying pan and on the thickness of the scones).
Transfer onto a wire rack to cool. Serve with some butter (traditional) or some herb cream cheese (on the photo).
Other favourite Scottish recipes @ Nami-Nami:
Cook-a-leekie soup
Cranachan (a raspberry and whipped cream dessert)
Mince and tatties
Oatcakes
Other foodbloggers writing about tattie scones:
Wendy @ A Wee Bit of Cooking (lovely heart-shaped ones ;))
Emma @ The Laughing Gastronome
Susan @ The Well-Seasoned Cook (LOVE the sprinkling of caraway seeds!)
Valli @ More Than Burnt Toast
Molten Chocolate Cake, the way I like it
You've seen this recipe on Nami-Nami already, back in 2007, but I'll repost it with slightly better step-by-step photos of eating process, not baking process :) These are super easy to make, and will bring a smile to every chocolate lover's face (that covers pretty much everyone, no?). The worst thing that can happen is that you overbake the cakes, but in that case you'll end up with wonderful chocolate cakes.
Molten Chocolate Cake
(okolaadivulkaanid)
Source: Food Migration
170 grams bittersweet chocolate
150 grams butter
160 grams sugar
75 g plain flour
4 large eggs
Butter six small ramekins thoroughly and dust with cocoa powder (a trick I nicked from David's blog). Place on baking tray.
Melt chocolate and butter in a small saucepan, remove from the heat.
Beat eggs and sugar together until thick, pale and fluffy. Add the melted chocolate and butter mixture. Continue to beat for another five minutes.
Add flour, beat for two more minutes.
Pour mixture into prepared ramekin tins.
Bake in a 180 C oven approximately 10 to 12 minutes - NO MORE! (Ovens do vary, so I'd test for doneness earlier rather than later).
Carefully turn the puddings onto serving plates. Dust with powdered/icing sugar and serve at once, when the puddings are still warm - otherwise you won't get that oozing chocolate effect :)
A good and slightly melted vanilla ice cream is a good accompaniment. Or perhaps some cherry compote?
Barnaise sauce, grilled steak and home-made chunky potato chips
Playing around with food is all fine, but sometimes I want a good old classic dish. Take the Barnaise sauce. I first encountered back in Denmark in 1992/1993 - my host mum would make it regularly and serve it with grilled steak. It came in a powdered form from a packet, but to my 18-year-old tastebuds it tasted just fine and I instantly fell for the tarragon-infused creamy sauce. A good steak and tarragon-enhanced sauce Barnaise is truly a match made in heaven! I wouldn't touch the Barnaise made from a powder anymore, but I still love the sauce.
Note that the sauce has nothing to do with the Swiss capital, Bern. It gets its name from the birth-place of d'Artagnan (the one in "The Three Musketeers"), Barn province, in South-Western France :)
The recipe below is based on Paul Gayler's recipe in Jill Norman's excellent The Cook's Book. Paul Gayler suggests using clarified butter to make this sauce (as well as it's "mother sauce", Hollandaise), but I am happy enough with using just melted butter myself.
What's your relationship to Sauce Barnaise? Love it or hate it?
Barnaise Sauce
(Barni kaste)
Serves 4 to 6 (makes about 600 ml)
2 Tbsp white vine vinegar
2 Tbsp water
1 tsp white peppercorns, lightly crushed
2 Tbsp roughly chopped fresh tarragon or 2 tsp dried tarragon
2 small shallots, chopped
4 large egg yolks
250 g unsalted butter, melted
1 Tbsp fresh tarragon, chopped
1 Tbsp fresh chervil, chopped
sea salt
Place the vinegar, water, peppercorns, tarragon and shallots in a small pan. Bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer for about 1-2 minutes, until reduced to about 2,5 Tbsp. Remove from the heat and leave to infuse and cool.
Strain the liquid into a heatproof bowl. Add the egg yolks and whisk until combined
Set the bowl over a pan of simmering water (bain-marie), the base of the bowl should not touch the hot water, but be just above it. Whisk the mixture for 5-6 minutes, until it thickens and is creamy and smooth in texture.
Remove the bowl and place onto a dampened kitchen towel (this helps to keep the bowl in place). Slowly pour in the melted butter in a thin stream, whisking vigorously all the time, until the sauce is thick and glossy.
Add the chopped tarragon and chervil, season to taste with sea salt and serve at once.
Italian-style chicken with capers, anchovy and tomatoes
After lousy November and December (read: dark, wet, cold, windy) we are now in the middle of beautiful January (read: bright, snow, cold). Proper winter weather, which I enjoy, even though it's much harder to push a pram on a snow-covered street, and it's occasionally slippery and icy - sometimes I think that holding on to a pram is the only thing that keeps me upright and in balance :) Ah, the joys of snow-filled cold Nordic winters :)
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