White Chocolate Raspberry Cake
A party just isn’t a party without cake…but ever wonder why? Sure, most people like cake, but when and how did the birthday traditions we know today–the cake, the song, the candles, the wish–begin?It is believed that the first actual birthday cake was made in Germany in the Middle Ages. The Germans would celebrate children’s birthdays with cake, calling the celebration Kinderfest.Cakes originally were a coarse, bread-like product, and later became a much sweeter version, called Geburtstagorten.In the 17th century birthday cakes were made more elaborate with details like icing, layers and decorations, like flowers. However, these kinds of cakes were only affordable by the wealthy, upper class due to the high-priced ingredients.In the 18th century, food and baking utensils became more accessible, and therefore affordable. With that, the price of cakes went down significantly and the number of cakes produced went up considerably.In classical Roman culture, 'cakes' were occasionally served at special birthdays and at weddings. These were flat circles made from flour and nuts, leavened with yeast, and sweetened with honey.In the 15th century, bakeries in Germany began to market one-layer cakes for customers' birthdays in addition to cakes for weddings. During the 17th century, the birthday cake took on its contemporary form. These elaborate 17th century cakes had many aspects of the contemporary birthday cake, like multiple layers, icing, and decorations. However, these cakes were only available to the very wealthy. Birthday cakes became accessible to the lower class as a result of the industrial revolution and the spread of more materials and goods. So, it has become the cultures and traditions to celebrate the birthday with delicious cake and beautiful wishes.There is no standard for birthday cakes, though the "Happy Birthday" song is often sung while the cake is served in English-speaking countries, or an equivalent birthday song in the appropriate language of the country. The phrase "happy birthday" did not appear on birthday cakes until the song "Happy Birthday to You" was popularized in the early 1900s. Variations of birthday songs and rituals exist in different parts of the world. In Uruguay, party guests touch the person's shoulder or head following the singing of "Happy Birthday to You". In Ecuador, the person whose birthday it is will take a large bite of the birthday cake before it is served. In Peru, guests used to sing "Happy Birthday to You" first in English with the name of the individual whose birthday it is, then in Spanish, later they sing any other song in Spanish regarding cake or date, finally blowing candles and serving the cake.In many cultures the person whose birthday is being celebrated is invited to make a wish, and blow out candles.[ Though the exact origin and significance of this ritual is unknown, there are multiple theories which try to explain this tradition. One theory explaining the tradition of placing candles on birthday cakes is attributed to the early Greeks, who used candles to honor the goddess Artemis' birth on the sixth day of every lunar month. The link between her oversight of fertility and the birthday tradition of candles on cakes, however, has not been established.Some scholars believe the tradition actually started in Germany, where a candle was supposedly placed on the cake to represent “the light of life”.Today, most western cultures celebrate birthdays with cake, lit candles and a birthday song. The number of candles usually represents the age of the person being celebrated. Many believe that a silent wish must be made while blowing out all the candles with one breath. The wish cannot be told to anyone else, or it will not come true.This year I let people choose my birthday cake and I hope I did a good job. I tried to make a delicious and beautiful cake. The recipe is quite simple, you just have to have some patience. I don't really enjoy making birthday cakes because I find it a bit stressful, but the results always makes me happy.
Ingredients
CRUST
- 10 eggs
- 100 g sugar
- 50 g cocoa
- 150 g flour
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- a pinch of salt
WHITE CHOCOLATE CREAM
- 450 g cream cheese
- 350 g white chocolate
RASPBERRY CREAM
- 450 g mascarpone
- 500 g raspberries
- 10 g gelatin
- 40 ml water
DECORATION
- 350 g cheese cream
- 200 g white chocolate
- 250 ml pineapple juice
Instructions
CRUST
- Separate the egg whites from the yolks and beat the egg whites with the salt powder until they become thickened. Add the sugar and continue to mix until the sugar melts and the meringue becomes shiny. Add the yolks and mix until incorporated into the egg whites. Add the flour gradually and mix lightly with a whisk to avoid the formation of lumps. At the end add cocoa and vanilla extract and mix until you get a homogeneous composition.
- Place everything in a tray with a diameter of 20 cm and put the tray in the preheated oven, at 180 degrees, on the function of rinsing up and down for 40-45 minutes. After the crust is baked, let it cool and cut it into 3 equal parts or divide the batter in 3 and cook it in 3 different trays.
- Syrup the batter with the pineapple juice.
WHITE CHOCOLATE CREAM
- Melt the chocolate at bain marie and after it has melted, let it cool for a few minutes.
- Mix the chocolate with the cheese cream until you get a homogenous composition.
RASPBERRY CREAM
- Using a chopper or a vertical mixer mash the raspberries. Put the raspberry puree in a sieve and stir until all the puree is drained and the raspberry seeds remain.
- Add the raspberries puree over the mascarpone and mix. Mix the gelatine with water and heat the gelatin until is melted. Add the gelatin and mix until you get a homogenous composition.
MONTAGE AND DECORATION
- Remember that we cut the batter into 3 equal parts? Take one part, put it in a tall round tray, add the white chocolate cream, add another batter, add the raspberry cream and on the top put the last batter.
- For decoration I made some more white chocolate cream following the same steps as I did for the cream I used for the cake.
- Add the cream in a posh and start to make cream shapes on the cake. Add some fruits, chocolates or whatever you like.
Notes
