Baking College In-Depth: Bublanina – Bake from Scratch

Bublanina, a Czech sponge cake, which has an analogous texture to espresso cake and is harking back to a French clafoutis, is agreeable to the attention and much more pleasing to the palate with its gentle, ethereal batter gently kissed with hints of lemon and vanilla. In step with custom, it’s dappled with the most effective summertime has to supply—gleaming darkish cherries, juicy blackberries, and tart raspberries, which nestle gently into the tender cake because it bakes. It will get its identify from the Czech phrase for “bubble,” referring to the best way the batter rises up and gently envelops the fruit. A dusting of confectioners’ sugar is the ultimate contact to this delicately understated and all the time delectable Bublanina.

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INGREDIENT BREAKDOWN

Glorious recipes require fantastic components. Right here’s how our recipe’s components contribute to creating the easiest Bublanina.

UNBLEACHED CAKE FLOUR: Unbleached cake flour makes a extra tender cake than all objective flour as a result of cake flour is constituted of mushy wheat. With a 5% to eight% protein content material, unbleached cake flour gives an excellent quantity of protein, giving our Bublanina the proper construction.

BAKING POWDER: Most baking powders are double-acting, which means the response happens twice, utilizing two completely different acids. The primary is a fast response when baking powder is mixed with a liquid within the batter. The second response is slower, occurring when the cake bakes.

KOSHER SALT: Kosher salt has a pure, clear taste as a result of it doesn’t include iodine or minerals. It’s flaked somewhat than granulated, permitting for extra even distribution when whipped into the cake batter.

EGGS: Eggs support in leavening the cake, contribute richness with their yolks, and add moisture to the sponge cake.

CREAM OF TARTAR: Including a small quantity of cream of tartar helps pace up the formation of air bubbles when whipping the egg whites. It additionally aids in stabilizing the whipped egg whites within the batter and helps them maintain their quantity.

GRANULATED SUGAR: Granulated sugar does greater than add sweetness to the cake. Sugar acts as a whipping aide when stabilizing the egg whites. It additionally incorporates air into the batter because it’s creamed with the butter. Sugar has hygroscopic properties, which means it could possibly take up water from the encircling atmosphere. Due to this, the Bublanina will retain
moisture even after being baked and cooled, resulting in an extended shelf life.

UNSALTED BUTTER: As a result of butter is important to the feel and richness of the cake, a European-style butter with the next fats content material than generic grocery retailer butter will yield the most effective outcomes. Because the salt content material can range throughout butter manufacturers, we use unsalted butter to regulate the precise quantity of salt desired.

VANILLA EXTRACT: Vanilla extract is a magical ingredient that provides instantaneous depth of taste and complexity to this cake.

LEMON ZEST: A contact of lemon zest boosts the cake’s taste delicately but distinctively.

FRESH FRUIT: Cherries are conventional, however any stone fruit or mixture of berries will work for this cake.

TOOLS OF THE TRADE

We advocate this set of instruments for our method

STAND MIXER: As a treasured energy- and time-saver, a stand mixer will assist whisk egg whites with the cream of tartar into foamy submission and effortlessly beat collectively the butter and sugar for the cake batter. (Pictured is the KitchenAid® Artisan Design Series Blossom Stand Mixer.)

ROUND CAKE PAN: Designed to bake evenly, this stunning, golden commercial-quality pan is crafted of aluminized metal for distinctive sturdiness, making the pan superb for baking the Bublanina. (Pictured is the Williams Sonoma Goldtouch® Pro Nonstick Round Cake Pan, 9”.)

SIEVE: We love this heavy-duty chrome steel sieve. It’s fitted with ergonomically formed handles that make it snug to carry and maintain when sifting dry components and dusting the cake with a heavenly sprinkling of confectioners’ sugar. (Pictured is the All-Clad 3-Piece Stainless-Steel Strainer Set.)

CHERRY PITTER: Cherry-pitting is extremely painless with this time-saving instrument. The splatter guard retains you and your kitchen from getting sprayed with juices as you pit a complete bowl of cherries with grace and ease. (Pictured is the OXO Cherry & Olive Pitter.)

OFFSET SPATULA: A small offset spatula provides you optimum management when spreading the batter evenly into the cake pan. (Pictured is the Williams Sonoma Olivewood Offset Icing Spatula, 4”.)

GRATER: This rasp grater is good for zesting lemon, with its razor-sharp chrome steel tooth that enable for grating in each instructions, which saves time and vitality. (Pictured is the Microplane® Rasp Grater.)

GLASS BOWLS AND SPATULAS: You may’t beat the fundamentals for all of your baking wants. Glass bowls are the proper vessels for measuring, prepping, and mixing all of your components. Spatulas are good for stirring and folding the batter effortlessly. (Pictured are the Glass Mixing Bowl 10-Piece Set and Williams Sonoma Ultimate Silicone Spatula Set with Stainless-Steel Handle.)

TIME TO SIFT

Sifting breaks up lumps within the flour and aerates the remaining dry components, making it simpler to combine into the batter

1. In a medium bowl, sift collectively flour, baking powder, and salt. Sifting ensures all of the dry components will evenly distribute within the batter.

PERFECT PEAKS

Whipped egg whites bolstered by cream of tartar assist give the cake its stunning top and pleasant texture

1. Within the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites and cream of tartar at medium-high pace till foamy. Cut back mixer pace to medium-low, and add ¼ cup (50 grams) granulated sugar in a sluggish, regular stream. Improve mixer pace to medium-high, and beat till medium-stiff peaks type. Switch to a medium bowl. Granulated sugar and cream of tartar support within the stabilization of the egg whites, however be sure to add the sugar in a sluggish, regular stream; this ensures that the sugar will dissolve into the egg whites as a substitute of giving the combination a grainy texture. Additionally, you don’t wish to deflate all the stunning air you whipped into the egg whites, which provides the cake a stunning gentle texture.

BEATING THE BATTER

Dreamily creamed butter and sugar and gloriously golden yolks give the cake texture and fantastic taste

1. Clear bowl of stand mixer. Utilizing the paddle attachment, beat butter and remaining ½ cup (100 grams) granulated sugar at medium pace till fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, stopping to scrape sides of bowl. Add egg yolks, one by one, beating till mixed after every addition; scrape sides of bowl. Beat at medium-high pace till gentle and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in lemon zest and vanilla. Make certain your butter is softened appropriately for this step, not too chilly or heat. Softened butter ought to have some resistance once you gently press it, but it surely ought to nonetheless hold its form. Because the butter and sugar are overwhelmed collectively, the combination aerates or creates plenty of tiny bubbles, contributing to the cake’s quantity. The extra bubbles you might have in your community, the lighter in texture your cake will probably be and the finer the crumb. Don’t skip the step the place you scrape the perimeters of the blending bowl. It ensures that the butter, sugar, and eggs mix cohesively, leading to a homogenized batter.

EASY DOES IT

Now that we’ve included air into the butter combination and the egg whites, it’s time to fold every thing collectively gently and adorn the batter with jewel-toned summer time fruit

1. Add egg white combination in three additions alternately with flour combination, starting and ending with egg white combination, folding by hand till simply mixed after every addition. Gently unfold batter into ready pan. Place fruit on batter. (Don’t press fruit into batter.) Fastidiously folding the egg whites in at this step is essential to a gorgeous, ethereal cake. Though cherries are a standard alternative, any mixture of berries or stone fruit can be incredible dotted on the highest of this Bublanina.