Equipment
Ingredients
Cake
- 300 g hazelnuts, ground
- 50 g all-purpose flour
- 100 g unsalted butter, melted
- 6 eggs
- 150 g sugar
Filling
- 3 pear, peeled, cored, and sliced
- 100 g sugar
- 45 ml lemon juice
- 15 ml eau de vie
- 450 g ricotta
- 100 g icing sugar
- 200 ml heavy cream
Hazelnut Praline Topping
- 200 g sugar
- 200 g hazelnuts
Chocolate Sauce
- 150 ml heavy cream
- 25 g unsalted butter
- 100 g dark chocolate, broken into pieces
- 1 g salt
- 15 ml hazelnut liqueur
Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is estimated per serving. Nutrients without complete source data are omitted.
Full nutrition
- Calories
- 960 kcal
- Protein
- 17 g
- Carbohydrates
- 84 g
- Fat
- 65 g
- Fiber
- 7 g
- Sugar
- 65 g
- Sodium
- 145 mg
- Saturated Fat
- 23 g
- Trans Fat
- 1 g
- Monounsaturated Fat
- 33 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat
- 6 g
- Cholesterol
- 200 mg
- Potassium
- 654 mg
- Calcium
- 206 mg
- Iron
- 4.5 mg
- Magnesium
- 124 mg
- Phosphorus
- 339 mg
- Zinc
- 2.4 mg
- Vitamin A
- 333 mcg
- Vitamin C
- 7 mg
- Vitamin D
- 1.3 mcg
- Vitamin E
- 8.6 mg
- Vitamin K
- 13 mcg
- Vitamin B6
- 0.4 mg
- Vitamin B12
- 0.8 mcg
- Thiamin
- 0.39 mg
- Riboflavin
- 0.46 mg
- Niacin
- 1.5 mg
- Folate
- 87 mcg
- Water
- 124 g
- Caffeine
- 8 mg
Sources: Aggregated Public Data, USDA FoodData Central
Method
Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F). Line the bases of two 22cm sandwich tins with baking paper.
Pulse the hazelnuts in a food processor until they reach a finely ground consistency similar to almond meal.
In a bowl, combine the ground hazelnuts and flour.
Melt the butter in a small saucepan or microwave and set aside to cool slightly.
Whisk the eggs and sugar in a large bowl for several minutes until the mixture is pale and has tripled in volume.
Gently fold the hazelnut mixture and the melted butter into the eggs using a large spoon, taking care not to deflate the batter.
Divide the batter between the two tins and bake for 20-30 minutes at 190°C (375°F).
Remove cakes from the oven and cool on a wire rack before removing the baking paper.
Combine sliced pears, sugar, and lemon juice in a saucepan. Simmer until pears are tender, then stir in the eau de vie.
Strain the pears through a sieve into a heatproof bowl, reserving the syrup and the fruit separately to cool.
Whisk ricotta and icing sugar until smooth, then add heavy cream and whisk until the mixture thickens.
Stir 15ml of the reserved pear syrup into the cream. Set aside 1/4 of this mixture and fold the cooled pears into the rest.
Brush one sponge with syrup, spread the pear filling over it, and top with the second sponge. Trim the sides for a clean finish.
Brush the top with syrup, wrap in cling film, and freeze for 2 hours to set.
Heat sugar in a saucepan until it turns into a golden-brown caramel. Stir in 200g of hazelnuts.
Reserve some whole glazed hazelnuts on a tray. Pour the rest onto paper to harden, then grind in a food processor into crumbs.
Coat the chilled cake with the reserved cream, then press the praline crumbs and whole hazelnuts onto the surface.
Heat cream, butter, chocolate, and salt in a saucepan until melted. Stir in the liqueur and serve warm with the cake.
Chef's Notes
- For the hazelnut sponge, toasting the hazelnuts before grinding will significantly enhance their flavor. Be careful not to over-process them into a paste; aim for a texture similar to almond flour.
- When folding the dry ingredients into the whipped eggs, use a large spatula and a gentle lifting motion. Overmixing will knock out the air, resulting in a dense cake.
- Ensure the ricotta filling is well-drained to avoid a watery texture. For an extra smooth filling, you can pass the ricotta through a fine-mesh sieve before mixing.
- The hazelnut praline needs careful attention during caramelization. Watch it closely; it can go from perfectly golden to burnt very quickly. If it burns, it's best to start over as burnt caramel is bitter.
- For the chocolate sauce, using good quality dark chocolate will make a noticeable difference in flavor. Adding a pinch of salt balances the sweetness and enhances the chocolate notes.
Storage
Refrigerator: 3 days — Keep covered to prevent the cake from absorbing fridge odors.
Freezer: 1 month — Freeze without the chocolate sauce for best results.
Reheating: Serve the cake chilled. Reheat the chocolate sauce gently in a microwave or small saucepan before serving.
Troubleshooting
The hazelnut sponge is dense and flat.
Cause: The egg and sugar mixture was deflated during the folding of the dry ingredients.
Fix: Cannot be fixed.
Prevention: Use a gentle figure-eight motion with a large metal spoon to fold, stopping as soon as no streaks remain.
The ricotta filling is too soft and leaks out of the cake.
Cause: The cream was not whisked to a sufficient thickness or too much syrup was added.
Fix: Chill the cake for an additional hour in the freezer to firm up the filling.
Prevention: Ensure the ricotta is well-drained and whisk the cream until it forms stiff peaks before adding syrup.
Cultural Context
This hazelnut and pear cake, often found in European patisseries, draws inspiration from the rich baking traditions of regions like Italy and France where hazelnuts and seasonal fruits are abundant. It's a sophisticated dessert that showcases the nutty depth of hazelnuts paired with the delicate sweetness of pears, making it a popular choice for special occasions or a refined afternoon tea.
