Staples- Gourmet recipes

Incas Mini Cakes

Made with Caraïbe 66%

An original recipe by chef Baptiste Blanc & L’École Gourmet Valrhona
Makes 15 mini cakes
Difficulty: Medium
Preparation time: 60 minutes
Prepare the day before: Jivara 40% & grilled corn whipped ganache
Required utensils: Cake pan (3 in.) Immersion blender Thermometer

3 steps

Recipe Step by Step

Step01

JIVARA 40% & GRILLED CORN WHIPPED GANACHE

100g Whole milk
30g Unsalted grilled corn 
20g Sugar
125g JIVARA 40% chocolate
230g Whipping cream

Bring the milk to a boil.
Add the coarsely ground, unsalted grilled corn, cover with a lid and infuse for 15 minutes.
Strain through a sieve.
Once you have strained the liquid, add some milk to make up for any you have lost so it weighs 100g again.
Add the sugar and heat the mixture again.
Gradually combine the hot mixture with the partially melted JIVARA 40% chocolate, taking care to form a smooth emulsion.
Immediately mix to make a perfect emulsion.
Add the cold whipping cream.
Mix again.
Leave to set in the refrigerator, preferably for 12 hours.

Step02

GRILLED CORN CRISP

125g Plain cornmeal
100g Butter
50g Raw cane sugar 
1g Salt
60g CARAÏBE 66% chocolate

Knead all the ingredients using the paddle attachment in a stand mixer. 
Spread out finely (approx. 3mm).
Cook on a sheet of parchment paper at 285°F (140°C) for approx 15 minutes.
Store in a dry place.
Break the crisp into fairly large pieces.
Melt the CARAÏBE 66% chocolate at 115°F (45°C) and use it to coat the crisp pieces.
Use immediately.

Step03

CARAÏBE 66% & AVOCADO SOFT SPONGE CAKE

300g CARAÏBE 66% chocolate
265g Ripe avocado 
350g Eggs
140g Raw cane sugar 
180g Wholewheat flour
10.5g Baking powder
3g Salt

Melt 210g of CARAÏBE 66% chocolate.
Chop the remaining 90g of CARAÏBE 66% chocolate into pieces.
Use an immersion blender to blend the avocado until creamy.
Whisk together the eggs and sugar until a ribbon forms*.
Sift together the flour and baking powder.
Add the blended avocado to the beaten eggs.
Then add the CARAÏBE 66% chocolate melted at 115°F (45°C). Incorporate the flour and baking powder.
Add the CARAÏBE 66% chocolate pieces.
Leave to cool at room temperature. Store in the refrigerator.

* A “ribbon” texture is semi-liquid. To find out if your mixture has got the right consistency, pick up a little bit with the end of your spatula. If it looks like a ribbon - in other words, it falls back down slowly, making folds on the surface of your preparation - you have got the right texture.

Assembly and finishing

Make the whipped ganache and set it aside in the refrigerator.
Make the toasted cornflour crisp.
Make the CARAÏBE 66% chocolate and avocado cake mix.
Put 80g of cake batter into individual cake pans lined with butter and flour.
Bake at 340°F (170°C) for approx. 20 to 25 minutes (until the blade of a knife comes out dry - be mindful of the chocolate chips as they can be misleading).
Take the cakes out of their pans as soon as they are out of the oven, let them cool and set them aside.
Once they have cooled, put the cakes back in their pans.
Add the melted CARAÏBE 66% chocolate to the grilled corn crisp.
Place 20g of crisp around the edges of the chocolate cakes and use a soup spoon to give each one a curved lip (see photo).
Set aside.
Beat the JIVARA 40% and grilled corn whipped ganache and make a scoop of approx. 40g in the middle of the cake.
Add a few pieces of crisp to finish decorating the cake.
Store in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
Enjoy.