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Frankfurter Kranz — cake with buttercream, jam and hazelnut brittle
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Source: https://recipheon.com/en/recipes/desserts/frankfurter-kranz-cake-with-buttercream-jam-and-hazelnut-brittle
About this recipe
Frankfurter Kranz is a German wreath-shaped cake combining tender butter cake with vanilla buttercream, fruit jam and crunchy brittle. In this home version, bake a single ring cake and cut it into three layers. Two thin layers of ready-made raspberry jam balance the sweet cream, while fine homemade hazelnut brittle covers the cake. The buttercream is made from cooked milk custard and real butter. Patient cooling matters: the custard and soft butter must be at a similar room temperature before combining. The cake and brittle must also cool completely before assembly. Use all the weighed buttercream to fill the layers, coat the cake and pipe twelve small rosettes. There is no need for extra syrup or fruit decoration. Several hours in the refrigerator settle the layers; a brief rest before serving lets the buttercream soften again.
Ingredients
Entire butter cake
180 g soft unsalted butter, 82% fat, at room temperature
160 g white sugar
200 g raw whole eggs without shells, about 4 medium eggs, at room temperature
200 g wheat cake flour, type 450
50 g cornstarch, not corn flour
8 g baking powder
1 g fine salt
60 g milk, 3.2% fat, weighed and at room temperature
All the vanilla buttercream
500 g milk, 3.2% fat, weighed
80 g white sugar
16 g sugar with real ground vanilla
40 g cornstarch, not corn flour
250 g soft unsalted butter, 82% fat, at room temperature
Jam and all homemade brittle
180 g ready-made thick raspberry jam, without straining through a sieve: 90 g for each of two layers
100 g plain dried hazelnuts without shells, unsalted and not roasted, with their thin brown skins
70 g white sugar
10 g unsalted butter, 82% fat, for the brittle
Weighed ingredients for the pan
8 g unsalted butter, 82% fat, for lightly greasing the pan
8 g wheat cake flour, type 450, for dusting the pan; shake out the loose excess
Steps
Take 80 g from the 500 g milk for the buttercream and mix with 40 g cornstarch, 80 g sugar and 16 g vanilla sugar. Bring the remaining 420 g milk to a boil in a saucepan. Pour in the mixed portion, whisking constantly, and cook on low for about a minute after it clearly thickens and bubbles appear. Transfer all the smooth custard to a wide bowl; do not add butter yet.
Cover the custard surface with plastic wrap and cool about 60–90 minutes to room temperature; do not combine warm custard with butter. Prepare a ring pan with an internal diameter of about 22 cm, a 6–7 cm center tube, a height of at least 7 cm and capacity of at least 2 liters. Spread all 8 g butter inside, including the tube, dust with 8 g flour and shake out loose excess. Preheat the oven to 175°C, conventional heat.
Beat 180 g soft butter with 160 g sugar for about 4–5 minutes until paler and airy. Separately beat together 200 g whole eggs without shells, then add in four portions, briefly mixing after each until combined. Scrape the bowl sides. The eggs, butter and milk for the cake should be at a similar room temperature so the mixture combines more readily.
Combine 200 g flour, 50 g cornstarch, 8 g baking powder and 1 g salt. Add to the creamed mixture in two portions, alternating with all 60 g milk, mixing briefly on low speed. Transfer all the thick batter to the pan and level. Bake on the lower-middle rack about 40–50 minutes until golden and springy, with a skewer inserted into the cake coming out dry. Do not open the oven early in baking.
Leave the cake in the pan about 10 minutes, then gently loosen the edges, invert onto a rack and remove the pan. Cool about 90–120 minutes until the center is completely cool. Do not trim off raised areas and do not discard crumbs; the entire ring will be filled. If a small piece stays in the pan, keep it to patch the matching layer during assembly.
Finely chop all 100 g hazelnuts without removing the skins. Spread 70 g sugar evenly in a dry skillet and heat on medium-low until melted and light amber; gently tilt the skillet. Remove from the heat, carefully add 10 g butter, then the nuts, and stir quickly. Hot caramel can cause severe burns and may foam when the butter is added.
Transfer all the hot brittle onto baking parchment and spread thinly with a spatula. Leave about 20–30 minutes to cool completely and harden. Break up, cover with another sheet of paper and crush with a rolling pin into fine crumbs, without grinding to a paste. Keep everything, including fine dust; all will coat the cake. Do not touch warm caramel and do not taste it.
Check that all the custard and 250 g soft butter are at a similar room temperature; the custard must not be warm or straight from the refrigerator. Beat the butter about 5–7 minutes until pale. Add custard one tablespoon at a time, briefly beating after each until the buttercream is smooth. Reserve 60 g for rosettes and divide the remaining buttercream into three equal portions: two for filling and one for coating the cake.
AI-generated Using a long serrated knife, cut the completely cooled ring horizontally twice to make three ring-shaped layers. Carefully lift off the upper two. Set the bottom one on a plate and spread with 90 g stirred jam, leaving a narrow border. Spread and level one of the three buttercream portions. Fit all saved cake fragments into their matching layers; do not add syrup.
AI-generated Add the middle layer, spread with the remaining 90 g jam and the second equal buttercream portion. Cover with the top layer and press lightly, keeping the central hole open. Use the third buttercream portion to coat the entire top, outer side and inner wall of the hole. Scrape the bowl sides and smooth with a spatula. Keep the separate 60 g for rosettes reserved; do not add extra butter or cream.
Over a wide plate, cover the entire buttercream-coated cake with cooled brittle, including inside the hole. Collect falling crumbs and gently press them on again to use everything. Put the reserved 60 g buttercream into a piping bag and pipe twelve small rosettes on top. Do not add fruit or other decorations. Refrigerate at least 4 hours, preferably 4–6 hours, until the buttercream sets.
AI-generated Take the cake out of the refrigerator about 15–20 minutes before serving so the buttercream softens slightly but still holds its shape. Divide into twelve portions, cutting from the outside edge to the central hole and wiping the knife between cuts. Share edible crumbs among the portions. Cover the remaining cake and refrigerate for up to 3 days after assembly; the brittle may soften over time from moisture in the cream.
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