Lyons Family Cookbook

Chocolate Marble Chiffon Cake

1/4

cup

cocoa (unsweetened)

2

Tbs

packed dark brown sugar

3

Tbs

boiling water

1 1/2

cups

granulated sugar

1 1/3

cups

cake flour, plus 3 additional tablespoons (reserved)

2

tsp

baking powder

1/2

tsp

sea salt

7

large eggs, 2 left whole, 5 separated

3/4

cup

water

1/2

cup

vegetable oil

1

Tbs

vanilla extract

1/2

tsp

almond extract

1/2

tsp

cream of tartar

--- VANILLA GLAZE ---

2 1/2

Tbs

butter

1

cup

confectioner's sugar

3/4

tsp

vanilla extract

2 - 4

Tbs

water

--- CHOCOLATE GLAZE ---

2

Tbs

butter

2

oz

unsweetened chocolate

1

cup

confectioner's sugar

2

Tbs

boiling water

1

Let eggs stand a room temperature for 30 minutes before proceeding.

2

Combine cocoa and dark brown sugar in small bowl. Stir in boiling water and mix until smooth.

3

Adjust rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees. Whisk sugar, 1 1/3 cups flour, baking powder, and salt together in large bowl (at least 4-quart size). Whisk in two whole eggs, five egg yolks (reserve whites), water, oil, and extracts until batter is just smooth.

4

Pour reserved egg whites into large bowl; beat at medium speed with electric mixer until foamy, about 1 minute. Add cream of tartar, increase speed to medium-high, then beat whites until very thick and stiff, just short of dry, 9 to 10 minutes with hand-held mixer and 5 to 7 minutes in KitchenAid or other standing mixer. With large rubber spatula, fold whites into batter, smearing in any blobs of white that resist blending with flat side of spatula.

5

Equally divide batter into two separate bowls. Mix scant 1/2 cup of one batter portion into cocoa mixture, then partially fold this mixture back into the batter from which it came. Sieve or sift remaining cake flour over the now-chocolate batter and continue to fold until just mixed. Pour half the white, then half the chocolate, batter into large tube pan (9-inch diameter, 16-cup capacity); repeat. Do not rap pan against countertop. Wipe off any batter that may have dripped or splashed onto inside walls of pan with paper towel.

6

Bake cake until wire cake tester inserted in center comes out clean, 55 to 65 minutes. Immediately turn cake upside down to cool. If pan does not have prongs around rim for elevating cake, invert directly over wire rack. Cool for about 2 hours before frosting.

7

To unmold, turn pan upright. Run frosting spatula or thin knife around pan's circumference between cake and pan wall, always pressing against the pan. Use cake tester to loosen cake from tube. For one-piece pan, bang it on counter several times, then invert over serving plate. For two-piece pan, grasp tube and lift cake out of pan. If glazing the cake, use a fork or a paring knife to gently scrape all the crust off the cake. Loosen cake from pan bottom with spatula or knife, then invert cake onto plate. (Can be wrapped in plastic and stored at room temperature 2 days or refrigerated 4 days.)

8

VANILLA GLAZE: Melt butter. Stir in confectioner's sugar and vanilla. Add water 1 Tbs at a time, and mix until smooth and of desired consistency. Transfer to a snack-size ziplock bag, cut a small hole in corner of the bag, and drizzle as desired over the cake.

9

CHOCOLATE GLAZE: Melt butter and unsweetened chocolate together in a small sauce pan. Cook on low heat just until butter and chocolate are melted. Remove from heat. Add confectioner's sugar and 2 Tbs boiling water. Stir until smooth. Let cool slightly if necessary. Transfer to a snack-size ziploc bag, cut a small hole in corner of the bag, and drizzle as desired.over the cake.

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS: For an improved chiffon cake recipe that was light but rich, with deep flavor, we made some adjustments to the original chiffon cake recipe, which tended to collapse or explode because the structure base of this cake—flour and eggs—is so sensitive. Rather than whipping all of the egg whites for this cake, we mixed some unbeaten egg whites into the dry ingredients along with the yolks, water, and oil. This provided the structure we were seeking to hold the cake together while also giving us the perfect chiffon cake: moist, tender, and flavorful. EXCESS GLAZE: If there is any extra glaze, keep in the ziplock bag, and you can use that over ice cream or fresh strawberries.

Source

Source: Cooks Illustrated - May 1996