I am of Polish descent and love Polish food. My Mother and Grandmother made lots of Polish dishes. They were both 100% Polish and both great cooks. Every year at Christmas time all the relatives got together and made Polish Kilbasa. It was the very very best! I finally got the recipe from my Mom and we actually went through every step to make sure I had it down pat. My Grandmother made the best Kapusta (cabbage, sauerkraut, onions and mushrooms)...so so good! Good foods bring back great memories. Actually I'm now getting hungry for both Kilbasa and Kapusta...LOL!
Back to the Karpatka...Karpatka is a delicious dessert made like a giant eclair. It's created by making a choux pastry for the top and bottom and has a wonderful vanilla cream filling which is called Crème Mousseline. The Crème Mousseline is like a really really good custard.
A Little History About Karpatka...
They say that this cake, some call it a pie, was created sometime in the 1950's, but they are not sure, it could have been sooner or later. The body of the cake (choux pastry) after baking looks like a mountain range. This cake is also called a Carpathian Mountain cake. Every time you make this cake, the choux pastry has a different appearance and yes, it does look kind of like a mountain range. Once sprinkled with powdered sugar it takes on the appearance of a mountain range covered with snow. Kind of a fun history about a cake...
What Ingredients You Will Need...
For the Crème Mousseline you will need the following:
- egg yolks
- sugar
- corn starch
- whole milk
- salt
- pure vanilla extract
- butter
For the Choux pastry you will need the following:
- water
- butter
- salt
- flour
- eggs
As you can see, there are really just a few ingredients that you probably already have in your cupboard to make this masterpiece that is delicious and very light. If you read my post from last week on Chocolate Peanut Butter Dream bars, you'll see how just how much lighter this dessert is. I love the Chocolate dessert also, but you can only eat a small amount. This dessert is light and airy with a wonderful vanilla flavor.
Let's Make the Karpatka Cake...
First add the egg yolks and 1/3 cup sugar to a medium bowl. Use a handheld electric mixer to beat together until the mixture is thick and pale yellow. Second, place the milk and sugar and salt into a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to gentle simmer.
Remove the milk mixture from the heat and gradually add the egg mixture to the milk mixture. Start with small amount, like a heaping tablespoon and mix. If you pour all the egg mixture into the milk all at once, you will have scrambled eggs floating in milk. So make sure to add the egg mixture slowly. When the mixture has cooled a bit, you can add the remaining eggs to the mixture. Once everything is combined, add the vanilla and mix once again. Return to heat and mix until the milk mixture starts to thicken. This will only take a few minutes to become thick. Take the mixture off the heat and place a piece of plastic wrap on the mixture and leave at room temperature until you are ready to use it.
At this point preheat your oven to 380 degrees F. and line two springform pans (I only had one, so I just made the bottom and then made the top separately.
Now for the Choux Pastry...
Add the water, butter and salt to a saucepan over medium heat. Once the butter is melted remove the pan from the heat and stir in the flour all at once. Turn the heat down to low and return the pan to the heat. Cook until the dough forms a ball and leaves a residue on the bottom of the pan, about 2 minutes stirring constantly.
Transfer the dough to a large bowl and let it cool until it's still quite warm, but not too hot to touch, about 5-10 minutes. Using a handheld electric mixer to beat in the eggs and egg yolk 1 at a time until fully incorporated. The batter will be smooth and glossy.
Divide the dough between the two springform pans, or just half in one pan and bake and then make the second one in the same pan. Make sure you cover the remaining dough so it doesn't dry out. The dough should cover the bottom. Spread with a spoon to make the mixture kind of smooth. Then take the back of the spoon and create a few peaks and valleys in the dough. This will create the mountain range. Then bake for 25-28 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan and then transfer the cakes to a wire rack.
Time to Finish the Crème Mousseline...
Once the custard is completely cooled, use a handheld electric mixer to cream together the butter and 2 tablespoons sugar in a large bowl until pale and fluffy. Start adding the custard 1 tablespoon at a time to the butter mixture. Keep beating until all the custard has been incorporated into the butter mixture. Cover with plastic wrap and wait until the top and bottom of the cake are completely cool.
Time to Assemble the Karpatka Cake...
Place the bottom of the cooked choux pastry back into the springform pan. Cover that piece with the custard and then place the other choux pastry on top of the custard and press a little. Refrigerate at least one hour before serving. When ready to serve, remove the springform ring and place on a decorative plate and sprinkle with powdered sugar. That's it! And believe me, it's really good!!!!!
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Karpatka (Polish Custard Cake) Recipe...
Author: An Edible Mosaic
Ingredients:
Creme' Mousseline:
- 5 large egg yolks
- 2/3 cup granulated white sugar - divided into 1/3 cup + 1/3 cup
- 7 T. potato starch (I used cornstarch)
- 2 1/2 cups whole milk
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract and vanilla bean paste. If you don't have paste, just increase the vanilla extract.
- 14 T. butter + 1 tsp. of butter
- 2 T. granulated white sugar
Choux Pastry:
- 3/4 C. water
- 6 T. butter
- 1/8 tsp. salt
- 3/4 C. flour
- 3 large eggs
- 1 large egg yolk
- butter to grease pans
- Powdered sugar for dusting the top of the cake
Instructions:
Start the Crème Mousseline
- Add the egg yolks and 1/3 cup sugar to a medium bowl. Use a handheld electric mixer to beat together until the mixture is thick and pale yellow. Beat in the corn starch until well combined.
- Add the milk, 1/3 cup sugar and salt to a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a gentle simmer.
- Remove the milk mixture from the heat. Gradually, starting with just a couple drops at first, whisk 1 cup of hot milk into the egg yolk mixture. Pour the egg yolk mixture into the pot and whisk in the vanilla extract (and vanilla bean paste if using)
- Return the saucepan to the heat, and turn the heat down to low. Whisking constantly, cook until the custard is thickened. This should take less that a minute.
- Once thickened, transfer the custard to a bowl and place a piece of plastic wrap directly on top. Cool to room temperature.
For the Choux Pastry
- Preheat the oven to 380F. Line the bottom of 2 (8 or 9 inch) springform pans with parchment paper that's trimmed to fit inside. Grease the sides with butter.
- Add the water, butter, and salt to a medium, saucepan over medium heat. Once the butter is melted, remove the pan from the heat and stir in the flour all at once. Turn the heat down to low and return the pan to the heat. Cook until the dough forms a ball and leaves a residue on the bottom, about 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
- Transfer the dough to a large bowl and let it cool until it's still quite warm, but not too hot to touch, about 5 to 10 minutes. Use a handheld electric mixer to beater in the eggs and egg yolk 1 at a time until fulling incorporated. The resulting batter will be smooth and glossy.
- Divide the dough between the 2 prepared pans. Spread the dough out to cover the bottom of each pan, and then use the back of a spoon to spread it unevenly to create divots and peaks (this is so the finished cake looks like the Carpathian Mountains.
- Bake until the choux cake is puffed and evenly golden, about 25-28 minutes.
- Cool for 10 minutes in the pans, then remove the cakes from the pans and cool completely on a wire rack.
Finish the Creme' Mousseline
- Once the custard is cool, use a handheld electric mixer to cream together the butter and 2 T. sugar in a large bowl until pale and fluffy.
- Add a spoonful of vanilla custard at a time and beat until incorporated, continuing until all the custard is mixed. Continue beating until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
- Place a piece of plastic wrap directly on top of the creme' mousseline if the cakes aren't completely cool yet.
Assemble:
Once the choux cakes are completely cool, put 1 of the choux cakes back into a springform pan. Spread the vanilla custard evenly on top. Place the other choux cake on top.
Refrigerate 1 hour before serving, and then remove it from the springform pan. Right before serving, dust the top with powdered sugar.
NOTES:
- Vanilla Bean Paste Substitute: If you don't have this on hand, simply use more vanilla
- Potato Starch Substitute: You can use 3 1/2T. of cornstarch instead
- Choux Pastry Tip: Don't be tempted to swap out the water for milk in the choux pastry for this recipe. Water helps result in a crisper, lighter choux pastry and also prevents over-browning. On the other hand milk in choux pastry acts as a tenderizer, and yields a softer pastry.
- Creme Mousseline Tip: When you make the creme mousseline, make sure the butter and the pastry cream are the same temperature. Both should be at room temperature, about 70 to 74F.
- If you don't have two springform pans: If you only have 1 springform pan, you can bake the choux cakes 1 at a time. Just be sure to place a piece of plastic wrap directly on top of the dough while the first cake bakes. Alternatively, if you don't have any springform pans, you can line 2 large baking trays with parchment paper and draw 1 (9-inch) circle on each. Spread the batter out onto the circles you drew and bake that way.
One Final Thought...
I believe I said somewhere in this post that every time I taste old recipes from my youth memories of days gone by are buzzing around in my mind once again. They say that the first sense that brings back memories is smell and there's nothing better than smelling or tasting foods that bring back those wonderful memories.
If you have time, it would truly be worth your wild to try Karpatka. Very simple ingredients and a very easy recipe to follow. Thanks again to Anediblemosaic.com for bringing back a lot of memories of my Polish heritage. Until next time...Enjoy!
Nicole McLaughlin from Allrecipes
I'd like to introduce everyone to Nicole McLaughlin from Allrecipes. This gal has easy and wonderful recipes for just about any food. The video above is one of my favorite dessert recipes, Banana Pudding. I have made it several times and every time I serve it, everyone raves. The ingredients are minimal, and the technique is very easy. If you are a fan of banana pudding, this one is the ultimate! Karpatku also uses a vanilla custard similar to the pudding that Nicole makes...Both custards are delicious!
