Lemon Doberge Cake
November 28, 2009 posted by David Leite
by David Guas
from DamGoodSweet: Desserts to Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth, New Orleans Style
(Taunton Press, 2009)
Makes one 9-inch cake
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Doberge (pronounced (”doh-bash”) cake is the birthday cake of New Orleans. Gambino’s, Haydel’s, and probably every bakery in the city offers their take on the filled and stacked layered cake, with the most popular option being the half-and-half, a Doberge with a lemon-chocolate split personality—literally, a lemon-filled-and-iced cake on one side and a chocolate-filled-and-iced cake on the other. This is my take on this truly New Orleans cake.
convert Ingredients
For the cake
2 sticks unsalted butter plus 2 tablespoons, melted, plus 2 tablespoons, at room temperature
1 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 large eggs
1 3/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup whole milk
2 cups prepared lemon curd
For the icing
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
4 cups confectioners’ sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 drops yellow food coloring
Method
Make the doberge cake batter
1. Sift the remaining 1 3/4 cups of flour, the baking powder, and salt together and set aside. Stir the vanilla into the melted butter and set aside.
2. Fill a medium saucepan with water to a depth of 1 inch, bring to a simmer over high heat, and then reduce the heat to low. Whisk the eggs and sugar together in a large heatproof bowl and place it over the hot water. Constantly whisk the mixture until it is warm to the touch, about 3 minutes. Pour it into the bowl of a stand mixer (or leave it in the large bowl if using a hand mixer) and whip on high speed until cool and tripled in volume, about 3 minutes.
3. Reduce the mixer speed to medium low, slowly drizzle in the melted butter, and then remove the bowl from the mixer. Use a whisk to gently fold in a third of the dry ingredients followed by half of the milk. Repeat, ending with a third of the flour mixture. Use a rubber spatula to transfer the batter to the prepared cake pan.
4. Bake the cake until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean and the center resists slight pressure, about 1 hour. Remove from the oven, set aside for 5 minutes, and then invert onto a cooling rack. Unclasp the pan sides, carefully remove them, and then allow the cake to cool completely.
Assemble and fill the doberge cake
1. Remove the metal springform pan bottom from the cake and slice it into 4 layers. Wash and dry the springform pan, reassemble, and coat the bottom and sides with nonstick cooking spray.
2. Place two 20-inch-long pieces of plastic wrap in the pan so the entire bottom and sides are covered, allowing the ends of the plastic wrap to hang over the sides of the pan.
3. Place 1 cake layer in the springform pan and top with one-third of the lemon curd. Use the back of a spoon or an offset icing spatula to spread the curd evenly over the cake layer, leaving a 1/2-inch border of bare cake around the edge. Repeat with the remaining cake layers and lemon curd.
4. Cover the top of the cake with the plastic wrap overhang (or an extra piece of plastic wrap if there isn’t enough overhang to completely cover the cake) and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Make the lemon icing and frost the cake
1. After the cake has chilled, make the icing. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl if using a hand mixer), mix the butter and sugar together on low speed until combined. Add the lemon juice and food coloring and mix on low speed until moistened, then increase the speed to medium and beat until creamy, about 2 minutes. Reduce the speed to low, add 1 tablespoon of warm water, and beat until fully incorporated, about 1 minute longer.
2. Place four 6-inch-wide strips of parchment paper around the edges of a flat plate or cake plate (some of the parchment paper should hang off the edge of the plate so you can pull the paper out from under the cake once it is frosted; the parchment keeps the plate clean while you ice the cake).
3. Unfold the plastic from the top of the cake and invert the cake onto the parchment-lined plate. Unhinge the sides of the pan and remove completely. Peel off the plastic wrap. Use an offset spatula to ice the top and sides of the cake. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour and remove the parchment paper before serving. Doberge cake can be served cold, or you can let it sit at room temperature for up to 1 hour before serving.
Make ahead: The baked cake can be stored for up to 1 day (store whole, not divided into layers). Wrap in plastic and keep at room temperature. The filled and frosted cake keeps for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
Variation: chocolate doberge cake
Follow the recipe for the Lemon Doberge Cake, substituting 2 cups of prepared chocolate pudding for the lemon curd. To make a chocolate ganache icing, bring 1 1/2 cups of heavy cream to a boil in a medium saucepan. Pour the hot cream over 12 ounces of finely chopped semisweet chocolate and set the bowl aside for 2 minutes. Begin whisking the mixture from the center until smooth, and then begin bringing the liquid from the sides of the bowl toward the center, whisking until the ganache has a nice sheen and is completely smooth. Whisk in 2 tablespoons of softened unsalted butter and press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the ganache. Set aside for at least 6 hours (or overnight) before giving the ganache a gentle swirl and frosting the top and sides of the cake with an offset spatula. After frosting, refrigerate the cake for at least 1 hour or up to 3 days before slicing and serving. As with the lemon Doberge, the cake can be served cold or at room temperature.
Recipe © 2009 by David Guas. All rights reserved.
© 2009 Leite’s Culinaria, Inc. All rights reserved. Terms of use.
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This recipe looks wonderful, and I am going to make it as soon as I get home from my Thanksgiving holiday! Yum!