Dufflet Rosenberg’s chocolate hazelnut mascarpone torte with raspberries

Dufflet Rosenberg, Toronto’s Queen of Cake, has to test a lot a desserts, which is a bit of an occupational hazard.

“I do a lot of testing, but I try not to eat a lot of cake,” she says. “I try to spit it out because there are lot of calories. It’s a great indulgence. It’s delicious and wonderful, and I support it 100 per cent. But I have to be careful, hence the exercise with cycling.”

Rosenburg started her baking business in 1975, supplying restaurants and cafés with cakes and other desserts. At the time, she did all her baking in her mother’s kitchen. Then in 1980, she opened shop on Queen Street West, which continues to sell cakes, cookies and tarts.

While cycling plays an important role in fitness for Rosenberg, the bike is more than just a means to an end. Bikes have been part of the 58-year-old baker’s life for a long time. She biked to school from the elementary level to high school. In her teens, she wanted a 10-speed.

“When I was 16, I wanted a 10-speed so badly. That’s when the 10-speeds were starting to show up,” she says. “I had a Peugeot. It was too big for me.”

She still had the Peugeot when she met her husband Marty Kohn. He then bought her first Moulton. Now, she has three bikes.

“I have two Moultons,” she says. “I have a 1964 Moulton, which is really old and has been restored. Restored and renovated, I suppose, because it doesn’t have all of its original parts. The other is a Bridgestone Moulton, which looks older: it’s not the space-frame type. It’s much lighter and the one I ride the most. I also have a road bike that Marty built for me more than 25 years ago. It’s made for my size. It has 24” wheels and small handlebars. It’s really tiny. If you look at it from far away, you’d think it’s a normal-size bike. But when you come up closer, you see that it’s not. It’s like a kid’s racer.”

Today, Rosenberg uses her bikes, mostly the Bridgestone, for commuting to her three shops, going to her baking facility in the city’s west end and exploring the city. Actually, there another bike in Rosenburg’s stable. She says she has three and a half bikes. You see, almost 25 years ago, her husband asked her the big question.

“He said, ‘What do you think about getting a tandem?’” she recalls. “I said, ‘OK, I”ll try it.’”

They got a Mariposa tandem bike and not only took it on rides outside of the city, but on 20 trips to Europe and the U.S. Their new True North tandem bike went on its inaugural trip this past September to southern California. They usually cover 1,000 km throughout two weeks.

The recipe by Rosenberg is a bit of an indulgence for the holiday season.

“Assembly is the trickiest part,” she says. “All the components are fairly simple: the filling is simple; the glaze is simple. The difficulty comes when you put it together. Try to make sure it’s not lopsided and that you chill it so the glaze goes on evenly. But, in the end, you’re going to eat it, so what’s most important is how it tastes.”

Step 1 – Chocolate Butter Cake

2 cups cake flour
¾ cup sifted cocoa powder
1¼ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
¾ cup (170 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
¾ cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 ⅓ cups strongly brewed coffee, room temperature

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F and line the bottom of a 11″ x 17″ jelly-roll pan with parchment paper. Lightly spray the bottom and sides of the pan with non-stick cooking spray.
2. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt.
3. With an electric mixer, cream the butter until soft. Add the white and brown sugars and cream until smooth and creamy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla.
4. On low speed, add ⅓ of the dry ingredients and ⅓ of the coffee. In two more batches, alternately add the remaining dry ingredients and coffee.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the batter evenly. Bake for 15–20 minutes or until the sides begin to pull away from the pan and surface springs back when touched.
6. Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Invert the cake onto the rack, peel off the parchment paper and allow the cake to cool completely

Step 2 – Hazelnut Praline

1 cup sugar
½ cup water
1½ cups (200 g) hazelnuts, toasted and skinned

Directions

1. Lightly spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray. In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to medium-high and continue to cook, stirring until the syrup caramelizes, about 4–6 minutes.
2. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the hazelnuts immediately. Pour the hazelnut praline onto the prepared baking sheet and cool until hard, about 30 minutes.
3. Chop the praline coarsely and transfer to the food processor. Process until finely ground and set aside.

Step 3 – Hazelnut Syrup

¼ cup water
2 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp hazelnut liqueur
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Directions

1. In a small saucepan, combine the water and sugar. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves.
2. Remove from the heat, stir in the liqueur and vanilla, and set aside.

Step 4 – Mascarpone Cream Filling

2 cups (500g) mascarpone cheese
¾ cup sugar
¼ cup hazelnut liqueur
1½ cups 35 per cent whipping cream

Directions

1. With an electric mixer at medium speed, beat together the mascarpone cheese, sugar and liqueur at medium speed until combined, about 1 minute.
2. Beat in the cream gradually. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until the mixture forms soft peaks and is spreadable. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Step 5 – Assemble the cake

5 cups fresh or instant-quick-frozen raspberries

Directions

1. Using a serrated knife, cut the cake lengthwise into three long strips of equal width. Place one strip on a rack. Using a pastry brush, moisten the top with some of the hazelnut syrup. Spread ¼ cup of the mascarpone cream over the cake. Cover the cake with a layer of raspberries in even rows. Scrape 1½ cup of the mascarpone cream on top of the raspberries.
2. Using a small offset metal spatula, smooth the cream into an even layer, allowing it to settle into the gaps in between the raspberries. Sprinkle ¼ cup of the praline over the cream layer. Place a second layer of cake on top of the praline and repeat the layering process. Top with the final cake layer.
3. Cut cake in half. Spread the remaining mascarpone cream in a thin even layer around the sides of each cake, filling all the gaps. Reserve the remaining praline for the sides of the cake.
4. Place the rack with the cakes on it in the freezer until set.

Step 6 – Chocolate Glaze

12 oz. (340 g) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1½ cups 35 per cent whipping cream
1½ tbsp corn syrup

Directions

1. Place the chocolate in a medium-size bowl.
2. In a pot, bring the cream and corn syrup to a boil. Pour over the chocolate and whisk until smooth. Cool for 5 minutes.
3. Remove the cakes from the freezer and place the wire rack
   on a baking sheet.
4. Pour the glaze over one cake, covering it completely. Scrape the glaze from the baking sheet back into bowl.
5. Repeat by pouring glaze on the second cake.
6. Press the remaining praline around the sides of the cakes.
7. Refrigerate the cakes until the glaze is set fully, about 20–30 minutes. Decorate with fresh raspberries. Refrigerate remaining chocolate glaze for another use.

Serves 12 (or more )

Nutritional Information

For one serving
Calories 979
Carbs 106 g
Saturated Fat 29 g
Protein 14 g
Fibre 12 g