Foodbuzz

Saturday, July 27, 2019

Peach Bellini Cake

Today, I want to mention the importance of clearly written instructions in a recipe. The main reason is that writing out things (which may seem the long way) can really make a difference between a successful recipe and a failed one. For instance, you can write "beat in 4 eggs" or you can write "beat 4 eggs till pale in color about 5 minutes". Clearly, the second instruction is the better way to go.

Which brings me to this recipe. I followed the recipe exactly, but the texture of the cake was dry and dense. It was almost like it did not rise at all. My baking powder is in date, I am thinking that beating the eggs longer may have made for a less dense cake. This post is one of those recipes that have no comments and no indication that it has ever been tested. I was disappointed, but as I mentioned before, untested is a bit of a risk. The cake does need some tweaks when it comes to texture. Outside of the texture problem, the cake and the icing does have good flavor.

The cake gets its flavor from peach schnapps and champagne. The frosting is a buttercream with pureed peach.  If those flavors inspire you enough to make the cake and experiment on improving the texture, the recipe is below. The flavor still has my interest, but the due to the texture problem I would not make this recipe as originally stated again.

Peach Bellini Cake

Cake /Ingredients (adapted from Recipe Goldmine)
1/2 cup champagne
1/2 cup peach schnapps
1 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs, room temp
2 1/2 cups flour
2 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp almond extract
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups sugar

Buttercream/Ingredients (adapted from Southern Living Magazine)
32 oz powdered sugar
1 large peach, peeled and chopped
3/4 cup butter

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour two 9 inch round cake pans and line the bottom with parchment paper.  Start by beating together the eggs and sugar in a stand mixer (see note above concerning this step). Once blended, mix in the oil, peach schnapps, champagne and almond extract. Set aside.

Using another bowl, sift together flour, salt and baking powder. Then fold into the wet mixture until just blended. Transfer to prepared pans, dividing the batter equally between the two pans.  Place in oven and bake until tester comes out clean, about 35 to 40 minutes. Let cakes rest in pans for 10 minutes, then invert onto rack and remove parchment. Cool completely before frosting.

For the frosting, start by pureeing the peach in a blender. Set aside. Using a stand mixer cream butter until smooth, scraping down sides as needed. Sift in 16 ounces of powdered sugar and beat until blended. Then add the puree, mixing until incorporated. Lastly, sift in the remaining powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Add more powdered sugar to reach desired consistency.

Place one cake layer on cake plate and frost the top surface. Top with the other cake layer and frost sides and top. Refrigerate to help set the frosting.

                            **LAST YEAR:Cashew Butter Blondies**