Filled either with chocolate or almond cream, Amandine is a traditional Romanian cake . Like most cakes, amandine has four components – the sponge cake, the syrup, the filling, and the glaze.
It has no chocolate ganache cream with whipped cream or melted chocolate frosting. It doesn’t even have cocoa in the sponge cake! If you want the countertop to be darker in color you can put a tablespoon of cocoa in it (although the original recipe does not have that). Amandina should taste like caramel, cocoa and rum. The original almonds have 3 sheets and 2 layers of cream. The components are: colored countertop, syrup, cream and glaze.
Of course, there are many recipes for this cake, so the ingredients may vary in some cases because they have evolved in time. Amandina has been popular in Romanian confectioneries ever since the 1960s, and it was constantly adapted, but the fact is people adore it.
Ingredients:
For sponge cake:
- 260 g sugar
- 8 eggs
- 40 ml water
- 50 ml oil
- 30g cocoa
- 150 g all-purpose flour
For filling:
- 4 eggs
- 200 g sugar
- 330 g unsalted butter , at room temperature ( ~ 3 butter sticks )
- 2.5 Tbsp cocoa
For syrup to moisten cake:
- 400 ml water
- 200 g sugar
- 2 Tbsp cappuccino
For chocolate glaze:
- 250 g chocolate (I used semi-sweet chocolate chips)
- 150 ml whipping cream
Preparation:
For the sponge cake:
- Beat egg whites and water with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Add sugar and beat until dissolved.
- In a separate bowl, mix egg yolks and oil. Fold in the egg yolks.
- Combine the flour and cocoa. Slow down the mixer and carefully blend in the flour and cocoa until just combined.
- Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). Bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until brown (you can insert a toothpick in the centre and if it comes out clean then it’s ready).
Filling:
- While the cake was baking, I made the filling.
- You have to beat the eggs and the sugar in a bowl over a pot of boiling water until thick and creamy. Then add half of the cocoa and mix until well combined. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.
- Cream the butter and add remaining cocoa. Combine with the chilled egg mixture.
Syrop:
For the syrup, combine water and sugar and stir over medium heat until sugar is dissolved. Add cappuccino and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and let it cool.
Place the cake (bottom side up) onto your work surface. Let it cool and then cut the cake horizontally in half. Moist each part with the cappuccino syrup. Using a spatula, evenly cover the top of the first layer with the cocoa filling. Place the second layer on top.