Garash torta

Ingredients

Walnut layers

• 300 gwalnuts, finely ground
• 8egg whites
• 200 gcaster sugar
• 2 tablespoonsbreadcrumbs, optional
• a pinch of salt

Chocolate cream

• 300 gdark chocolate, 60 percent
• 8egg yolks
• 150 gsugar
• 250 gbutter, softened
• 100 mlwater

Glaze

• 200 gdark chocolate
• 150 mldouble cream
• 20 gbutter

To decorate

• walnut halves
• cocoa powder, optional

Directions

1. Grind the walnuts finely but not to paste. They should look like coarse flour. Use a scrupulously clean and dry bowl. Any trace of fat stops whites whipping. Add a pinch of salt to the whites. Whip them to soft peaks first. Adding the sugar takes patience. Add the sugar a spoonful at a time. Whip well between each addition. Keep going until it is all in. The meringue should be thick and glossy.
2. Rub a little between your fingers. It should feel smooth rather than gritty. Add the ground walnuts in three additions. Fold them in with a large metal spoon. Cut down through the middle and lift over. Turn the bowl round as you go. Stop the moment no dry nut is visible.
3. Line the trays with baking paper. Draw circles about twenty centimetres across. Spread the batter thinly inside each circle. Heat the oven to 160C before baking. Bake them for about fifteen minutes. They should be dry and lightly coloured. Let them cool on the paper completely. They are fragile until fully cool.
4. Melt the chocolate over barely simmering water. Never let water or steam touch it. Take it off and let it cool slightly. Whisk the yolks with the sugar and water. Set the bowl over barely simmering water. Whisk it constantly without stopping. Keep going for about eight minutes. It should coat the back of a spoon.
5. Take it off and whisk until it cools. Combining it needs everything at one temperature. Beat the softened butter until pale and light. Beat in the cooled yolk mixture gradually. Everything must be at room temperature.
6. Set the first layer on a plate. Spread a thick layer of cream over it. Set the next layer on top of it. Press it down onto the cream gently. Repeat until all the layers are used. Spread cream thinly over the top and sides. Refrigerate the cake for at least two hours.
7. Warm cake melts the glaze straight off. Heat the cream until it steams. Do not let the cream boil at all. Pour it over the chopped chocolate. Leave it one full minute without stirring.
8. Stir in the butter last for shine. Let it cool until just pourable. Set the cold cake on a rack over a tray. Pour the glaze over the centre. Let it flow outwards and down the sides. Help it round the edge with a palette knife. Press walnut halves round the edge. Serving it is done cool rather than cold.
9. Take it out twenty minutes before serving. Cut it with a hot dry sharp knife. Cut small slices, since it is very rich. It keeps five days refrigerated.

Technique

• The cake is attributed to a confectioner named Kosta Garash around eighteen eighty-five, an attribution that is traditional rather than fully documented, with accounts of his origin varying; what is certain is that the cake carries his name and has been made in Bulgaria ever since.
• There is no flour at all, with ground walnuts replacing it and whipped egg white giving the structure, and the layers are deliberately dry so they absorb the chocolate cream.
• The butter, yolk base and melted chocolate must all be at room temperature when combined, since cold butter and warm chocolate will split the cream.

Substitutions

• Hazelnuts or almonds can replace walnuts, giving a different but workable cake.
• A simple ganache stands in for the cooked yolk cream, though it is less traditional.

Variations

• Some bakers add breadcrumbs to the nut layers to absorb their oil.
• The number of layers varies from three to six between bakers.
• A version with rum in the cream is also made.

History

Created around 1885 by the Hungarian pastry chef Kosta Garash working in Bulgaria.

Frequently asked questions

What is Garash torta?

Garash torta is a dessert from Bulgaria: flourless walnut layers under dense dark chocolate ganache. Created around 1885 by the Hungarian pastry chef Kosta Garash working in Bulgaria.

How long does Garash torta take to make?

Garash torta takes 45 minutes of preparation and 40 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes one cake, 12 slices. It is rated hard to make.

What can I substitute in Garash torta?

Yes, within limits. Hazelnuts or almonds can replace walnuts, giving a different but workable cake. A simple ganache stands in for the cooked yolk cream, though it is less traditional.

What is the most important thing to get right in Garash torta?

Rub a little between your fingers. It should feel smooth rather than gritty. Add the ground walnuts in three additions. Fold them in with a large metal spoon. Cut down through the middle and lift over. Turn the bowl round as you go. Stop the moment no dry nut is visible.