Cinnamon Torte

Going down memory lane:  I’ve been craving this cake since the 90’s!!!  Ever since Cavendish Mall Pumpernickel’s restaurant closed down in Montreal, I haven’t tasted or seen a cake similar to this, in any of the local restaurants or pastry shops.  This was one of the first “fancy” cakes I ever tried that wasn’t a typical store bought birthday cake.  After finding this recipe in 2016, I experimented and made it a few times for the family.  The seniors all said that it brought back the fond memories for them too!  Even cinnamon haters enjoyed this cake!  Of course the sugar content has been reduced to accommodate our current palates.

This cake can be time consuming because we need to bake the cookies first.  The cookies keep and can be made ahead of time.  Just put on some relaxing music.  Assembling the cake is easy but you still cannot enjoy until the flavours have melded!  Whenever you want to show someone how much they mean to you, Make This Torte!

My family has a history with the Pumpernickel’s restaurant.  My Dad worked there, my hubby worked there and my brother worked there!!!  They just didn’t all work there at the same time.  Pumpernickel’s also had an amazing New York Cheesecake that I compare all other cheesecakes too.  If I ever find a New York cheesecake, that is comparable to the Pumpernickel’s New York Cheesecake, I’ll have a few stories from my Hubby and Brother-in-law that I will include.

Before Pastry Courses

INGREDIENTS

Cookies:

390g     flour

16g       cinnamon

340g     butter

325g     sugar

2          eggs

Filling:

1380g   whipping cream

2 Tbsp  icing sugar

1 Tbsp  vanilla

Decoration:

3⁄4 cup chocolate curl

METHOD

Cookies:

·    Draw a 9” circle template on a parchment paper to use as a guide for spreading the cookie dough.  Cut 15 pieces of 10-12” square parchment papers to spread the cookie cookies on.

·    Preheat oven to 375 (or 350 convection)

·    Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time while mixing. Add flour and cinnamon a little at a time mixing well.  Let dough rest for 15 minutes.

·    Divide dough into 15 portions (approx. 1/3 cup measure for each portion).  Place 1 parchment square over the circle template.  The circle should be visible through the parchment paper.  Place 1 portion of cookie dough on the parchment and, using the template as a guide, spread the cookie dough with an offset spatula to fill the circle.  It will be very thin.  Place on cookie sheet.

·    Bake for 4-6 min or until it starts to brown on the edges. (Careful because they burn easily!)

·    Cool on a wire rack before stacking

·    Continue with the remaining dough.

·    At this point you can wrap and store these cookie layers until you are ready to use them. The torte itself does not take long to assemble.

     Tips and Tricks for making the cookies:  A cut out plastic circular template, made from a tub container lid, makes the spreading of the cookie dough a breeze.

Filling:

·    Whip the cream, vanilla and icing sugar together until stiff.

·    Reserve about 1 1/2 cup for decorating the top of the Torte.

Assemble:

·    Place a dollop of whipped cream on the bottom of the cake plate (this is to anchor the cookie) and place your first cookie on it. Spread approx. a ½ cup of filling (plus a little extra when needed) and repeat until all cookies and cream have been used

·    Put the reserved whipped cream into a piping bag and do 8 rosettes of whip cream on the top on the Torte.

·    Sprinkle with chocolate curls.

·    Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight.

Adapted from:  http://www.food.com/recipe/cinnamon-torte-294038