Hazelnut cake

This cake is a hazelnut riot, incredibly delicious. We have a sponge that you can choose to make with or without gluten, filled with a hazelnut diplomat cream, followed by a light, frothy cream that covers the entire cake. We then have a hazelnut crumble that covers the entire cake, and finally we decorate it using these preparations: cream spikes, larger crumble pieces, toasted hazelnuts, and edible gold leaf.

Procedure

Start with the cream. In a bowl, weigh the sugar and cornstarch. In a small bowl, add the lecithin, the hazelnut paste and margarine, and finally, in a small saucepan, the milk.

Add the lecithin to the sugar and starch and mix with a whisk.

Pour the powders into the milk and whisk together. If there are lumps, for example, if the lecithin isn't dissolving well, blend with an immersion blender.

Cook the custard over low heat, or on a low induction hob. 

While cooking, stir continuously with a whisk and bring to a temperature of about 85°C. You will immediately notice a change in consistency and the cream will begin to thicken. 

Then remove the saucepan from the heat, transfer the cream to a jug, add the hazelnut paste and margarine and blend with an immersion blender, stirring occasionally with a spatula so that the mixture blends well around the edges and bottom of the jug.

Transfer to a bowl, cover with cling film, so that it does not form a skin, and leave to rest in the refrigerator for at least two hours. 

Prepare the sponge.

Preheat the oven to 170°C, static.

Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper. Take an 18cm diameter ring (or classic mold) and grease it with margarine, ensuring the parchment paper strips adhere well to the edges. 

Cover the bottom of the ring with aluminum foil to prevent the mixture from leaking out (this step is not necessary if you are using a cake pan with a bottom).

Mix the milk and oil with a whisk for a couple of minutes to create an emulsion between the liquid and the fat. 

Add the sugar and salt and mix. 

Sift the flour (rice or 00 flour), starch and yeast and pour into the bowl.

Mix with a whisk until the mixture is smooth and lump-free.

Pour the mixture into the mold and level it.

Bake at 170°C for about 35 minutes. Insert a long toothpick into the center of the cake; if it comes out clean, the mixture is cooked. 

Let it cool at room temperature for at least 1 hour, then remove the ring and remove the baking paper (and any foil if you used a ring and not a cake pan). Let it cool completely in the refrigerator.

Then cut in half using a serrated knife, to obtain 2 layers of the same thickness.

Once the custard has cooled, weigh the vegetable cream into another bowl.

Then whip the cream using an electric whisk or a stand mixer until stiff and frothy.

Now combine the hazelnut custard with the whipped cream.

Lightly stir the custard with a spatula to soften it and gradually add the whipped vegetable cream, always stirring with a spatula and making movements from the bottom up so as not to deflate the cream.

At this point the diplomatic cream is ready, transfer it into a pastry bag and keep in the fridge for at least 1 hour before using it

Prepare the crumble. Preheat the oven to 170˚ static.

In a bowl, weigh the cold margarine from the fridge cut into cubes, the 00 or rice flour, salt, hazelnut flour and sugar.

Mix by hand, or in a stand mixer with the leaf hook, until the mixture is compact, combined, but sandy; there is no need to form a loaf.

Coarsely crumble 2/3 of the mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, and use the remainder to make larger pieces of crumble, like pebbles, and place them on another baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake the crumbled crumble at 170˚C for 15 minutes and the larger pieces for 18 minutes. Let cool completely at room temperature before assembling the cake, at least half an hour.

Assembly.

Take the plate on which the cake will be served. Make a small mound of cream and place the first cake layer on top. Brush the cake with about 30g of non-dairy milk and brush the top.

Cover with about 250 g of cream, using the pastry bag with the tip cut off and creating a smooth spiral.

Place the second cake layer on top and press lightly. Moisten again with the non-dairy milk.

Then make another layer with about 250 g of cream, always creating a spiral. 

Then using a spatula, cover the entire cake, also using this cream for the edges.

You'll have some leftover cream for the final decoration. The cream doesn't need to be perfectly frosted, as it will be covered with the crumble. 

Then take the crumbled crumble and cover the entire cake, both the edges and the surface. 

Clean the plate of any crumble that has fallen.

Then decorate the cake on the surface with cream spikes, some large pieces of crumble, some toasted hazelnuts and edible gold leaves. 

Place in the refrigerator for at least an hour before cutting.