Candied Cherries
Cherry Compote
Hazelnut Praline
All Images © Katie Quinn Davies
Finally (!) I managed to find some time today to make the Masterchef Black Forest Gateau I've been rambling on about for the past few weeks... and I have to say, with much, much regret...
Holy Cow, what an utter NIGHTMare!! :(
This cake was a killer to make. I initially decided to make it today as I was planning a dinner party tonight, and thankfully (due to a re-schedule) I didn't find out how painstakingly long it would take to complete this cake 2 hours before my guests arrived...
Honestly I cannot fathom how complicated and far-fetched this recipe was to work with. I really feel for the 3 contestants on the actual show who had to make this totally over-the-top (and utterly pretentious) recipe, in such a short time-frame. If I were in their shoes, I'd probably have been found in the corner of the show's set, covered in chocolate ganache and candied cherries bawling crying whilst subsequently having a nervous breakdown...
I'd consider myself a competent baker but I really didn't enjoy making this recipe, it had about 13,789 parts to it, all which seem to involve standing over a double-boiler of water either melting chocolate or sugar. The amount of washing up was chronic. I actually had to rope in my husband to help as I started baking the cake at around 11.00am and I was still going at 3.45pm - leaving me little or no light to work with photography-wise (my light starts to diminish around 4pm here in Sydney in the Winter months).
I will admit when I read the reviews on the actual Masterchef Australia forum, the sponge itself seems to have caused a plethora of problems for a lot of Masterchef followers who have attempted this cake before me, so in order to save myself time and hedge my bets, I decided to use a shop bought chocolate cake mix for the actual sponge - I find a lot of these pre-mixes can be hugely successful, in particular this Australian one which as an added bonus is gluten-free too. However even by saving myself the hassle of making the actual cake sponge, this recipe really was just too much for me (and I've seriously considered studying to become a professional pâtissier). The complexity involved to make what, quintessentially should be a much more straight-forward recipe ruined the enjoyment of baking process.
Without a doubt and in fairness to the recipe, it does taste amazing, incredibly rich and the combination of the cherry compote, chocolate sponge, mascarpone cream and sour candied cherries is really incredible, but I found a few flaws in the recipe too, i.e.: when I followed the instructions for the chocolate ganache it split almost instantly (and in the process I wasted a very expensive bar of chocolate)... The recipe instructs that the chocolate be melted and cream heated then combined, in all my years of making ganache, this has been a sure-fire way for the mixture to split. I had to remake the ganache and followed my normal procedure of warming the cream and pouring on-top of the cold, chopped chocolate, then waiting a minute or two and stirring to combine.
All in all a very elaborate, indulgent cake, but in my opinion a waste of 4-5 hours slaving over a stove...
21 comments:
I'm exhausted reading that!! Won't be attempting that one! Tracey :)
5 hours Katie?? That is crazy! I feel your frustration. I am not a competent baker, in fact 7 times out of 10 my baking turns out badly. But i've often thought about attempting a Black Forest Gateau. It's my all time favourite cake but I rarely see it for sale here, not even in the freezer section (well where I live anyhow). Still I think I might give it a bash some day. That's how it works for me - if I wait long enough between baking disasters I forget the pain of the last one and launch into the next attempt with much vigour and enthusiasism!
Mags, this is not a traditional BFG, it was devised seemingly by Gary Mehigan... It's been slated a bit for being called a BFG as it's not really... It's not in essence a difficult thing to make but jeepers it's so time consuming and you need to hire a dishwasher for the day... Plus, by the time you've finished slaving over it for, what feels like a week, the last thing you want to do is eat it! *L* :)
Really? I suppose they wanted to complicate things for televison purposes. I will attempt it one day, just not the Masterchef recipe.
5 hours?! OMG! Hats off to you for persisting. I think i would have thrown in the towel much before and assembled what I had into an edible concoction :D
Hmm, wonder if this is a realistic recipe or just one for a challenge ?
5 hours - wow. I think a lot tastier can be made for a lot less. But your end result looks simply awesome.
Gorgeous! gorgeous! I can't believe how much of a time commitment this cake was! (though by the looks of it, well worth it.)
Painful to read Katie, but fabulous end result!
Thanks everyone for your comments, I really so appreciate you all taking the time to add your thoughts... :)
Yes, a very time consuming exercise but I am glad I did it (if for anything to say, I'd never do it again!) and luckily I managed to off-load a huge whack of the cake today to my husband's nieces and nephew :) I have to admit, the look on the kid's faces when they saw the size of the cake was priceless and very endearing ;)
Interestingly, my sis-in-law; Helen, mentioned to me that she recently cooked the Masterchef Lasagne recipe from a few weeks back and whilst it tasted great in the end, it too took a lifetime to prepare... She too said she'd be hard pushed to try it again when there are so many easier options for the same dish available...
In fairness thinking about it today, I probably can deduct an hour of the time due to the fact I decided to make 5 individual cake layers as opposed to making two (and following the original recipe) and then slicing horizontally, as I figured to do so would be pretty hard to get looking as good as I needed for the photos...
Sorry but I can't help but laugh at your exploits! Phew! I would have been screaming! I imagine a lot of the recipes they give the contestants are "challenging" and we all need to remember that this is for a TV show! Overall Katie I think it looks amazing and good on you!
Looks delicious! :)
I am exhausted just reading the cake couldn't imagine making it as well! Looks absolutely divine though and sure it was worth all the effort seeing the looks on your neice and newphews faces.
your use of lights and shadows are just stunning. Ever thought about doing a tutorial? Or have you?
cheers
Peter
Peter - I am very (very) flattered! Thank you very much, I'm really only turning professional now after spending the past 10 or so months teaching myself, so no, I haven't given any tutorials yet but you have given me a huge cheesy grin which is now plastered all over my face...! :)
Oh what a gorgeous looking cake and I am a huge fan of Black Forest. But the cooking sounds painstaking. Wow.
I have just found your blog and LOVE your photos. As a passionate newbie to food photography it is a treat to see work like yours.
Thanks,
E
Well done Katie! You pulled it off and it looks great. It's all about technique and practice. Next time you make it, you can probably get it done in 3 hours. Food that tastes great and looks great always takes time to make. I usually make cakes the day before. Like you, I'm too tired to eat after making it. Most french pastries takes a little under 3 hours to make.
"Next time I make it" Rex?
*Duff*
(sound of Katie falling off her chair in shock) LOL ;)
I was just looking for a great black forest cake for Father's Day... and then found myself laughing - yikes! Great story and stunning photos. I only wish I could of helped finish it off. :)
wooooooooooooooooow
Here what i found -> vision correction
I made this cake last year after it was shown on television and I thoroughly enjoyed reading your post about making the cake because I felt the exact same way!
Took ages to make, the sponge was a disaster and wayyy too much cleaning up.
Photos look great however!!
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