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Carrot Cake

Serves 6
  • Steps
  • Ingredients

Steps

  • Preheat the oven to 160C. Begin to cool down ice cream machine.
  • Juice carrots to make 100ml juice for sorbet and 40ml juice for the apricot insert.

To make the sorbet

  • Place the water and glucose in a saucepan. Mix together the sugar and sorbet stabilizer, add to the saucepan and bring to the boil over high heat.
  • Meanwhile, place the lemon juice, apricot puree and carrot juice in a bowl.
  • When the sugar mixture has reached the boil remove from the heat and pour into the juices and puree. Whisk until combined. Strain and set over an ice bath to cool. Churn in an ice-cream machine according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Set aside in the freezer until needed.

To make the carrot cake

  • Place flour, brown sugar, bicarb soda, baking powder and salt in a bowl and stir to combine. Gradually add in egg and oil and beat until combined into a smooth mixture. Add remaining ingredients and mix until they all just come together. Pour mixture into greased rings divide into 3 and bake in the oven until a skewer comes out clean, about 15 - 18 minutes. Remove from oven and place in blast chiller.
  • When frozen, slice the carrot cake to 0.5cm thick. Use a 6cm cutter and cut out a round and place back in blast chiller. Reserve the scraps for the crumble.
  • Reduce oven to 140C.

To make the apricot insert

  • Place the apricot puree and sugar in a small saucepan and warm over medium heat till sugar dissolves (don’t boil). Remove from heat, add gelatine, carrot juice and stir until dissolved. Pass the mixture through a fine sieve. Pour 15g of mixture into silicon mould and set aside in the freezer.

To make the rice bubble disc

  • Place the dark chocolate into a microwaveable bowl and melt in the microwave, heating in bursts of 15 seconds so the chocolate does not burn. Once the chocolate has melted, stir in the hazelnut praline paste until well combined and smooth. Fold in the rice bubbles and feuilletine mixing until combined.
  • Roll gently between 2 pieces of baking paper; avoid breaking the rice bubbles in the mixture. Roll until a 3mm thickness is achieved. Place onto a flat tray and place into the freezer until frozen.
  • Remove the rice bubble sheet out of the freezer. Cut out a disc using a 6cm round cutter. Return to the freezer.

To make the crumble

  • Crumble the carrot cake scraps onto a lined baking tray. Place in the oven until dried out. Allow to cool. Transfer to a food processor and process to form crumbs. Set aside.

To make the praline cremeux

  • Heat the milk, 60ml of the cream, and vanilla bean in small saucepan.
  • Meanwhile, whisk together the sugar and egg yolks in a bowl until creamy. Add the cornflour and whisk until combined. When the milk and cream has come to the boil, remove from the heat and add a little to the egg mixture. Whisk together and then pour the egg mixture back into the saucepan and continue to whisk. Return to the heat, cook out the cornflour for 4 minutes or until custard consistency is achieved. Take off the heat and whisk in the gelatine. Pass through a strainer and then whisk in the hazelnut paste. Allow the mixture to cool to 40C.
  • Whip remaining 125ml cream until semi-whipped. Fold the cream into the hazelnut mixture. Transfer mixture to a piping bag.

To assemble the cake

  • Line the inside of the plastic mould with a strip of acetate. Place on a small tray lined with baking paper. Pipe a layer of praline cremeux until just under half way up the mould. Place apricot insert into the middle of the praline, so that the bigger surface area is facing up. Push the insert into the praline gently. Place the rice bubble disc on top of the insert, followed by the carrot cake, pressing down gently between each layer.
  • Place filled mould in the blast chiller until completely firm.

To make the caramel glaze

  • Place cream and vanilla in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
  • Meanwhile, place 175g of the sugar and 140ml water in a saucepan and set over medium heat, stirring just until sugar dissolves. Allow to heat to 204C and caramel in colour. While whisking, pour boiled cream over caramel.
  • Combine remaining 15g caster sugar and cornflour in a bowl, add remaining 20ml water and stir to make a paste. Add paste to caramel. Bring the mixture back to the boil and continue cooking, whisking, for a few more minutes. Remove from heat.
  • Place chocolate in a bowl, pour over caramel mixture and stir to combine. Add gelatine and stir until dissolved. Strain into a jug and cover surface with plastic wrap. Set aside

To make the cream cheese foam

  • First make an anglaise. Place milk and 150ml of the cream in a saucepan and heat until just beginning to bubble.
  • Meanwhile, place egg yolks and sugar in a bowl and whisk to combine. While constantly whisking, slowly add hot milk/cream mixture to the egg/sugar mixture. Once combined, return mixture to the saucepan and set over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture coats the back of a spoon. Remove from heat, strain and set over an ice bath to cool.
  • Place cream cheese and remaining 50ml cream in a saucepan and set over medium heat until mixture softens. Add 100ml reserved, cooled anglaise and blend until combined. Set aside over an ice bath.
  • When cool, transfer mixture to a whipped cream siphon, charge twice, and set aside in fridge, laying it down on its side.

To make the caramelised walnut crumble

  • Spread walnuts on a paper lined baking tray. Place caster sugar and water into a saucepan and set over medium heat. Cook, brushing down sides of saucepan with water, as necessary, until sugar has dissolved and caramelized, Pour over the walnuts and allow to set and harden. Roughly chop and set aside.

To make the candy carrot strips

  • Use a vegetable peeler to peel the carrot long strips.
  • Bring the water and sugar to the boil, in a small saucepan. Remove from heat. Add the carrot strips. Cover with a cartouche, and set aside to cool.

To make the graffiti

  • Place micro cocoa butter in a bowl and completely melt using a microwave. Add titanium powder and blitz with a hand blender until combined. Try to avoid bubbles stir in the yellow color. Strain everything together and allow to cool to 33C.
  • Meanwhile, ensure caramel glaze is about 40C, warming over hot water, if needed. Remove filled mould from the blast chiller and unmould onto a wire rack. Ensure edges are smooth and run a finger around top edge to smooth. Pour over the glaze to completely cover.
  • Decorate glazed cakes with graffiti by flicking graffiti with a pastry brush. Transfer carefully onto presentation plate and set aside.

To make the chocolate discs

  • Temper the milk chocolate. Place 100g milk chocolate in a plastic bowl and place in the microwave until almost melted. Gradually add the rest of the milk chocolate in small amounts, stirring continuously between batches until it has reached a temperature of 30C to 31C. Spread the tempered chocolate onto a piece of acetate as evenly and thinly as possible. Allow to set until firm, but not hard then cut out discs using a 3cm and a 4cm cutter. To flatten, place baking paper on top of the discs and a flat tray on top. Place discs in the fridge until assembly.

To temper the orange chocolate

  • Place 150g orange chocolate in a plastic bowl and place in the microwave until almost melted. Gradually add the rest of the orange chocolate in small amounts, stirring continuously between batches until it has reached a temperature of 28C to 30C. Spread the tempered chocolate onto a piece of acetate as evenly and thinly as possible. Allow to set until firm, but not hard then cut out discs using a 3cm cutter. To flatten, place baking paper on top of the discs and a flat tray on top. Place discs in the fridge until assembly.

To serve

  • Place assembled carrot cake in the centre of the plate. Garnish with carrot cake crumbs, caramelised walnut crumble and chocolate discs. Add the carrot ribbons. Add a squeeze of cream cheese foam to the serving plate. Add a teaspoon quenelle of the sorbet on top of the carrot cake. Garnish with baby celery leaves.

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