Easy Chess Cake: Checkmate if you understand how it’s made

Discover how to prepare chess cake: an easy and, at the same time, surprising recipe

An easy to make chess cake, with only 1 basic dough and a solid topping

Recipe for 4 people.

Classic (no restrictions), Vegetarian

Preparation: 2:00 + time to cool + time to freeze and firm up

Interval: 00:35

TOOLS

3 bowls, 1 strainer(s), 1 spatula(s), 1 brush(s), 1 mould(s), 1 rolling pin

EQUIPMENT

conventional + processor + mixer

METERS

cup = 240 ml, tablespoon = 15 ml, teaspoon = 10 ml, teaspoon = 5 ml

Ingredients CHECKERED CAKE (BATTENBERG) – DOUGH:

– 250 g of wheat flour

– 100 g of almond flour

– 2 teaspoons of baking powder

– salt to taste (pinch)

– 340 g unsalted butter at room temperature

– 1 1/2 cups sifted sugar

– 6 units of eggs

– 4 tablespoons of milk

– 2 teaspoons of almond essence (added halfway through the dough – without cocoa)

Ingredients: Chess Cake Cocoa Dough (add to half of the dough):

– 4 teaspoons cocoa powder

– 2 teaspoon(s) of sugar

– 2 tablespoons of milk

Ingredients to assemble (join the cake):

– 200 g apricot jam – or as much as needed (or peach jam)

Ingredients for the solid coating (homemade marzipan):

– 150 g of almond flour

– 90 g of sugar

– 60 g apricot jam (or enough to blend) (or peach jam)

– 2 1/2 tablespoons cocoa powder

– 1 1/2 teaspoon(s) almond essence

Ingredients FOR OILING:

– oil to taste

PREPARATION:

1. Separate the utensils and ingredients for the recipe.
2. A whole chess cake recipe corresponds to 04 servings and you get a cake weighing about 1.350 kg, assembled with 9 strips (as shown in the photo).
3. For the entire recipe, use a 20X30cm baking pan, greased with butter and divided with baking paper, to accommodate the two doughs.
4. Remove the butter from the refrigerator and use it as an ointment.
5. In a bowl, sift and combine the dry ingredients of the dough (wheat flour, yeast and salt), add them to the almond flour and set aside.
6. In a separate bowl, sift the sugar to be used in the mixture.
7. Preheat the oven to 180°C.

PREPARATION:

Chess Cake – Dough Preparation:

1. Using a mixer, beat the butter with the sifted sugar until light and fluffy.
2. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
3. Without beating, gradually incorporate the dry ingredients into the butter and egg mixture, using a spatula with light movements, from the bottom up.
4. Then add the milk and mix again.
5. Divide the dough into two equal parts.

Checkered Cake – Finishing the Pastry:

1. Almond dough: Add almond essence to half of the dough and mix well.
2. Cocoa mass: In a bowl mix the cocoa, sugar and milk. Add this mixture to the other half of the dough and mix well.
3. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, each on one side, separated by baking paper.

Checkered Cake (Battenberg) – Cooking:

1. Place in a preheated oven at 180°C and cook for approximately 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean.
2. Remove from the oven and let cool a little in the pan before removing from the mould.

Chessboard Cake – Assembly:

1. Heat the apricot or peach jam in a pan until it becomes liquid (it is not necessary to add water). Strain and let cool.
2. If necessary, trim the sides and top of the cake to ensure they are straight and symmetrical.
3. Next, make uniform strips, 2X2 cm thick.
4. Brush apricot or peach jam onto each strip and assemble the cake, alternating colors to create a checkerboard pattern.
5. If necessary, to brush all the slices, add more heated and filtered apricot jam.
6. For the standard package of 1 whole recipe, like the cake in the photo, 9 strips were used, of which 1 was discarded.
7. Assemble with a base of 3 strips and at least 2 layers, ideally 3 layers (1 whole recipe).
8. Wrap the cake in cling film and set aside.

Solid coating – (Homemade marzipan):

1. In a food processor, mix the almond flour, cocoa and icing sugar.
2. Gradually add the apricot or peach jam until a smooth, solid mass is formed.
3. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough between two sheets of oiled baking paper, forming a rectangle of 30×45 cm (for a whole recipe) or large enough to wrap the cake.
4. Cover the entire surface of the square cake with the frosting, cutting off any excess to fit the size and turning the cake face down.
5. Wrap the cake in cling film and place in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

FINALIZATION AND ASSEMBLY:

1. Remove the cling film, cut the chessboard cake (battenberg) slice and serve.
2. Store in the refrigerator, preferably wrapped in cling film.

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Source: Terra

Ben

Ben Stock is a lifestyle journalist and author at Gossipify. He writes about topics such as health, wellness, travel, food and home decor. He provides practical advice and inspiration to improve well-being, keeps readers up to date with latest lifestyle news and trends, known for his engaging writing style, in-depth analysis and unique perspectives.