Magic vanilla cake

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PRESENTATION

Magic vanilla cake

Magic vanilla cake is a surprising cake, both to the taste and sight, which has conquered the web. Its recipe is right off the internet! You may wonder what is magical about a cake with simple ingredients like flour, eggs, sugar and vanilla extract. Relatively quickly, you can prepare a cake that while baking forms three magical layers that will have different consistencies, but the same vanilla taste! The first layer, the one that will be the base, will have a more solid consistency, very similar to that of flan, but with a more intense color. The middle layer will be soft and slightly gelatinous like a pudding, while the final covering will be similar to a soft sponge cake, which you will make even more delicious by sprinkling with powdered sugar. The secret to the success of this dessert is... following a "neat disorder"! You must, in fact, add the ingredients in the sequence and at the indicated temperatures, following the recipe instructions, or the layers will not form correctly. To make this experience even more magical, enjoy your magic vanilla cake with your eyes closed and savor all its parts, delighting in the contrast of its layers and all its goodness!

INGREDIENTS

Ingredients for an 8x8” ( 20x20 cm ), 2.5” ( 6 cm ) high, square baking pan
Whole milk 2 cups (500 ml) - warm
Sugar ¾ cup (150 g)
Butter ½ cup (125 g) - melted and cooled
Type 00 flour 1 cup (115 g)
Eggs 4 - at room temperature
Water 1 tbsp - cold
Vanilla extract 1 tbsp
Lemon juice 1 tbsp
Fine salt 1 pinch
For dusting
Powdered sugar to taste
To grease the pan
Butter to taste
Preparation

How to prepare Magic vanilla cake

To prepare the magic cake, start by melting the butter in a saucepan 1. Be careful not to let it darken and, once melted, pour it into a bowl and let it cool to room temperature. Then separate the egg whites from the yolks 2 and pour the yolks at room temperature into a bowl, where you will add the sugar 3.

Now with an electric mixer, beat the yolks with sugar for at least 10 minutes, until the mixture becomes clear and frothy 4. Still beating, add a tablespoon of very cold water 5 and a tablespoon of vanilla extract 6 to the yolks with sugar. If you do not have an electric mixer, or if you prefer, you can use an egg beater or whisk.

Add a pinch of salt 7 and the melted butter that you cooled 8, then continue to beat for a few minutes. Sift the flour, add it to the mixture, a little at a time, and mix until completely absorbed 9; in the meantime, heat the milk in a saucepan.

Once hot, pour it into the mixture 10 and let it mix for about 1 minute. It is essential that the mixture has no lumps, if it does, you can strain the mixture with a narrow mesh strainer using the back of a spoon to remove the lumps. At this point take the egg whites at room temperature and pour them into a clean bowl, start whipping them with a perfectly clean electric beater 11. While whipping and when the egg whites have become clear: add the lemon juice (or white wine vinegar) 12 which will give stability to the mixture. You'll need very soft peaks.

Gently beat the egg whites until stiff, so as not to make them droop 13 and mix until a fairly liquid mixture is obtained. Butter a square baking pan measuring 8x8" (20x20 cm) and 2.5" (6 cm) high 14 and line both the bottom and the edges with baking paper 15The size of the baking pan is important to obtain the correct thickness of the cake.

 

Then pour the mixture into the buttered and lined baking pan 16 and bake in a static oven preheated to 300° F (150° C) for about 80 minutes, until the surface of the vanilla magic cake is golden brown 17; take the cake out of the oven and let it cool completely at room temperature, then cover it with a layer of plastic wrap 18 and let it set in the fridge for at least 2 hours.

When the cake has set, remove the baking paper 19 from the baking pan and cut the cake into cubes 20. To make cutting easier, use a long, smooth-bladed knife wet with water or use a nylon thread. Place the cubes on a serving plate, sprinkle them with powdered sugar 21 and your vanilla magic cake will be ready to be served and enjoyed!

Storage

Magic cake can be stored in the fridge closed in an airtight container or well covered with plastic wrap for up to 3 days. You can either freeze the baked magic cake in the pan you baked it in or cut it into cubes which can be placed in an aluminum baking pan, taking care to keep them well apart.

Tips

The beauty of this cake is that it is, in fact, magical! To change the taste, just add a little coffee or, for the cocoa version, instead of 1 cup (115 g) of flour, add 1/2 cup (50 g) of cocoa and 1/2 cup (65 g) of flour. Don't forget to sprinkle it with cocoa powder! A couple of technical tips: use a toothpick to assess whether it is baked and, indeed, you can avoid ending up with a cake done outside and liquid inside. If you want, you can replace the vanilla extract with vanilla bean seeds.

For the translation of some texts, artificial intelligence tools may have been used.