Chocolate Almond Meringue Cake

     Yesterday I finally found an old recipe of a Hungarian walnut cake that my friend's mother shared with my husband, years ago. Yes, that is right, I did say my husband! We tasted this delicious nutty and chocolaty, flour-less cake, about five years ago. My lovely hubby loved it so much, that he felt compelled to ask for the recipe. More recently, we licked our lips once again, as Buni spoiled us all with her SUMEGHE.  Thank you Buni, and Ramona, for all your wonderful recipes, and for all the good times we shared in your great company, with amazing food and exquisite desserts! 

Here's my version of Buni's delicious Sumeghe, with some modifications. For one, I used ground almonds, instead of walnuts.  I also used brown instead of white sugar. Finally, I adjusted both the cake batter, and the chocolate cream by adding almond extract to the first, and vanilla extract to the latter. I call it Chocolate Almond Meringue because that's what it is... But I have to give credit to Buni, and her delicious Sumeghe. They inspired and motivated me to bake the cake below.

For the Cake:

• 8 egg whites

• 8.9 oz (or 250 g) brown sugar

• 8.9 oz (250 g) almond meal or finely ground almonds

• 1/2 tsp almond extract (optional)

For the Chocolate Icing:

• 8 egg yolks

• 8.9 oz brown sugar

• 2 oz (about 50 g) baking cacao powder

• 7 oz (about 200 g) soft (room temperature) butter

• 1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

How to:

1. Pre-heat the oven at 350 degrees F. Butter, line with parchment paper, and butter again, a jelly roll pan (I used a 15 x 10 x .8 in pan, which is roughly 35 x 22 cm).

2. Mix the egg whites in an electric mixer, on high speed. When the mix has fluffed up and hardened to resemble the consistency of meringue, add the sugar progressively (1 Tbsp at a time). Add the almond extract. With a spatula, fold the almond meal into the batter slowly and carefully.

3. Put the egg-white mixture in the pan, and bake in the preheated oven for approximately 45 to 60 min.

Once the mixture finished cooking, turn the pan up-side-down, and rest the baked meringue on a flat working surface (counter top or clean large cutting board). Trim the edges if necessary. Cut the meringue lengthwise into three equal sections, while it is still warm. 

You will end up with three long, skinny rectangles. Next, you will dress them with chocolate icing and stack one on top of the other, to form the actual cake (see picture, above.)

4. While the almond meringue is cooling off, place the yolks, sugar and mix in a heavy sauce pan. Put the pan on the stove, and cook the yolk mix under a low heat. Add extract and the cacao powder, continuing to mix. Add the soft butter. Mix everything while it cooks, for about 20 min. The chocolate sauce will start boiling and its consistency will thicken (like polenta). Once this is achieved, take the pot off the stove, and cool the mixture for a few minutes.

5. Divide the chocolate mixture in three parts. Start icing each of the three rectangles of almond meringue with the chocolate mixture. The chocolate must be warm when icing the cake. As it cools off, it tends to thicken rather fast.

6. Refrigerate the cake until the chocolate cream has hardened and set a bit. Decorate the cake with almond slivers, or anything else that seems appropriate. Refrigerating the cake for at least 12 hours, rather than eating it right away, ensures the ultimate culinary experience!

Tip: I recommend leaving the cake to warm up to room temperature before serving it. (Unless I serve the entire cake at once, I usually take out and cut as many slices as I need, and refrigerate the rest of the cake). This will give the flavors a chance to mend together, making this delicious dessert taste even yummier.

Enjoy!

-E