Yet another Hungarian inspired recipe, this one a dessert discovered and devoured at Központi Kávéház Szamos Cukrászda (translates as Central Cafe and Confectionary Szamos). So many accent marks! So many “Z’s”! So many consonants! How on earth do you pronounce that? The dessert in question is two dacquoise cookies (crunchy meringue with ground nuts) with a chocolate, walnut and hint of coffee Bavarian Cream filling. I made notes while eating it at the café and recreated it once I returned home.
I tracked down the dessert called Eszterházy Tallér (including the z’s, the consonants and accent marks!) and even found their ingredients online. I swapped out some industrial bakery products for items anyone can find at regular grocery stores. Otherwise, and flavor-wise, this is a faithful recreation of this delectable dessert.
Note: You could make this as individual mono-portions, or one larger torte. The only difference is how you make the dacquoise (two very large disks, or lots of smaller ones to make the sandwich ends). What’s the difference between a torte and cake you ask? Tortes are typically dense, rich, and made with little to no flour, often using ground nuts or breadcrumbs instead, while cakes are generally lighter, airier, and rely on flour as a key ingredient. So yes, these Eszterházy Tallérs tortes are also gluten-free!
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Chocolate and Walnut Dacquoise Torte (Eszterházy Tallér)
Ingredients
- 4 large egg whites, room temperature
- 1 cup walnuts (110 g)
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tarter
- Pinch of kosher or fine sea salt
- 4 large egg yolks
- 2 cups (500 ml) whole milk
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup (55 g) walnuts
- 2 heaping tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons unflavored gelatin, plus 1/4 cup cold water to bloom it in
- 2 ounces chocolate (between 50 – 71 %), finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/2 teaspoon instant coffee granules
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
For the Dacquoise
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For the Filling (Bavarian Cream)
Directions
- Pre-heat oven to 275 F (135 C)
- Make the Dacquoise (steps 2 – 7): In a food processor grind the nuts until they are very fine like flour. Stop short of it becoming a paste
- In a very clean bowl, beat the egg whites until foamy then add the salt and cream of tartar
- Add the sugar to the egg whites very slowly and continue whisking until they achieve stiff peaks
- Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the vanilla and chopped nuts. This is your “dacquoise”
- If making one large torte, on two pieces of baking paper (parchment) pipe the dacquoise into 2, 9-inch (23 cm) circles. If making numerous mono-portions, on baking paper (parchment) pipe the dacquoise onto 16 – 20 smaller circles (about 2- – 3-inch diameters each)
- Bake for 1 hour, then turn the oven off and leave the dacquoise in the oven with the door closed for 2 hours
- Make the Bavarian cream (pastry cream with gelatin and folded in whipped cream): In a small bowl, pour 1/4 cup cold water and sprinkle in 2 tablespoons of unflavored gelatin. Stir and set aside while it “blooms”
- In a food processor, combine the sugar and walnuts and process until it is like a fine flour
- In a medium size pot (about 1- or 2-quarts), add the egg yolks, the ground walnuts with sugar, cornstarch, coffee granules, salt and milk. Whisk briskly (do not let the sugar sit on the egg yolks too long or the sugar will burn the yolks)
- Place the pot on the stove top and bring it to low heat. Whisk continuously until the custard mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a wood spoon. This will not be as thick as regular pastry cream, but it should leave a heavy trail on the spoon (it takes about 10 – 12 minutes)
- Remove the pot from the heat and whisk in the chopped chocolate, butter and vanilla. Let this custard mixture sit for 5 minutes to cool a bit, then whisk in the bloomed gelatin until it is fully dissolved and well blended. Let this mixture cool to room temperature
- Whip the heavy cream in a mixing bowl until it reaches stiff peaks. Fold the whipped cream into the cooled custard. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. You’ll likely have to quickly re-whisk the chocolate custard to bring it back to a creamy texture before using
- Assemble the dessert right before serving: Whether you are making one large torte or a number of mono-portions, spread the Bavarian cream onto the bottom of one dacquoise cookie and top it with another cookie, thus making a sandwich. Use a pastry bag with a regular or star tip to distribute the Bavarian Cream if you want this to look extra fancy (Otherwise use a spoon and an offset spatula). Dust the top dacquoise cookie with powdered sugar if desired. Serve chilled NOTE: Keep the Bavarian cream chilled until ready to assemble and serve
Greg Nelson Cooks 