Szatmári Szilva Torta

This recipe was created by the National Trade Guild of Hungarian Confectioner Industrialists at the request of the Hungarian Prime Minister’s Office, for the 2008 celebration of St. Stephen’s Day, Hungary’s national holiday. While the cake contains a little pálinka and rum, it is said to be safe for children.

But as this accompanying article indicates, the recipe is quite complicated and recommended for experienced cooks only.

Ingredients:
For the piskóta
340 grams dried plums
120 grams whole eggs
1 vanilla stick
60 milliliters Casino Rum
120 grams butter
120 grams powdered sugar
70 grams walnuts, ground
140 grams flour
5 grams baking powder
5 grams cinnamon
7 grams lemon zest
3 grams salt

For the Marzipan Cream
130 milliliters milk
100 grams egg yolk
100 grams marzipan, grated
11 grams “bitter marzipan,” grated
22 grams sugar

For the Chocolate Cream
90 milliliters milk
50 grams egg yolk
30 grams cocoa paste
60 grams sugar

For the Plum Pálinka Syrup
30 milliliters quality plum pálinka
30 milliliters simple syrup (made with 15 grams sugar and 15 milliliters water)

For Decorating
50 grams gelatin, cooked (250 milliliters water and 40 grams gelatin)
150 grams plum lekvár (jam)
60 grams walnuts, ground
230 grams whipped cream
Dried plums
Almonds, sliced

Method:
For the Piskóta
Dice the dried plums, boil water in a pot, and add the plums. Leave them in the water until they soften, but do not cook them. Drain and cool them off immediately with cold water. Put the plums in a bowl and pour the rum over them. Put the whole eggs in a bowl and scrape the vanilla stick into it. In a separate bowl, beat the butter with the powdered sugar until it is very fluffy, then add the egg mixture and beat until it is the consistency of a very light cream. Add this to the plums and mix carefully, while adding the dry ingredients, which have been previously mixed. Stir until the mixture is homogeneous, but don’t over-stir or it will be too firm. Divide the mixture into three 340-gram portions and put each in a cake pan with a 23 centimeter diameter. The layers should be one centimeter thick. Bake on 210 Celsius for ten minutes. When done, sprinkle the tops with powdered sugar and remove the cakes from the pans.

For the Marzipan Cream
Boil two-thirds of the milk with the sugar and gradually add the grated marzipan. Mix the milk with the egg and gradually add, stirring continuously. Cook until it thickens. Mix the cream in a blender.

For the Chocolate Cream
Boil two-thirds of the milk with the sugar and add the cocoa paste. Mix the milk with the egg and gradually add, stirring continuously. Cook until it thickens. Mix the cream in a blender.

Continuous stirring is very important for both base creams because they burn easily. It is recommended to cook them a day before the cake is filled.

For the Plum Pálinka Syrup
Make a simple syrup by boiling the sugar with the water. Add the pálinka.

To Assemble the Cake
Spread the pálinka syrup on the cake layers. Next, spread each with 50 grams of homemade plum lekvár. Sprinkle each layer with 20 grams of roasted ground walnuts. Use a 6-centimeter-high hoop 23 centimeters in diameter. The hoop is needed, because the creams are very soft when filling. Place a cake layer in the hoop, and spread it with chocolate cream reserving approximately 30 grams of it. Place the next cake layer on top, and spread it with three-quarters of the marzipan cream. Place the third layer on top, spread it with the rest of the marzipan cream and use the rest of the chocolate cream to decorate the surface with a marble-like design. Refrigerate for three hours, then slice it into 16 slices. Decorate with cream, dried plums and roasted almond chips.