Many families in Germany have that one cake recipe that is very special to them. In our family, it’s Cloud Torte – fruity cream between two layers of meringue cake. In the 1980s, my aunt brought this recipe to our family. She had received it from a relative in West Germany. Growing up in East Germany, we were craving products and ideas from the West because they were different and often not available to us. I remember how excited we were when we received parcels from relatives for Christmas or a birthday. There was so much variety in flavors and everything smelled so different. We were also always hoping to get new ideas for cooking and baking. From creative recipes to different ingredients that we could not purchase in East Germany there was a great desire to try new things whenever we could. When my aunt received this recipe she immediately tried it out for a family gathering. And we were all blown away! The tanginess of the fruit combined with the sweetness of the meringue and the creaminess of the filling created an amazing combination of flavors and textures. From that time onwards, this meringue tart has become a favorite in our family. Whenever someone asks “What cake should I make?”, at least one person will suggest the Cloud Torte. But not only our family loves the Cloud Torte. This cake impresses guests and is also versatile because it can be made with different types of fruit. In the summer, it will taste great with fresh strawberries or raspberries. In the winter when fresh berries are not as flavorful we prefer using canned fruit such as mandarins or pineapples.
Recipe
Ingredients
For the batter:
150g all-purpose flour
125g sugar
1 pack vanilla sugar
125g butter (at room temperature)
1 pinch salt
2 tsp. baking powder
4 egg yolks
5 tbsp. milk
For the meringue:
4 egg whites
200g sugar
Some sliced almonds
For the filling
600 ml whipping cream
2 packs WhipIt
3 packs vanilla sugar
Fresh or canned fruit to your liking. Fresh strawberries and raspberries, fresh or canned pineapple, canned mandarins are good choices.
Instructions
1) Preheat the oven to 340 degrees (320 if you are using a convection oven). Grease a round 10 inch springform cake pan. If you have two of them in the same size grease both. If not the bottom and the top layer of the cake can be baked in stages. We also like to use parchment paper for the bottom of the springform because that will make it easier later to transfer the cake from the pan to a cake stand.
2) Sift the flour and the baking powder. Separate the yolks from the whites. Set aside.
3) With an electric whisk beat the butter (which has to be at room temperature to be soft enough), the sugar, the vanilla sugar, and a pinch of salt on high until creamy. Now add the egg yolks one by one, incorporating them into the butter mixture. Take your time for this step and continue whisking for about 30 seconds for each yolk.
4) Turn the electric whisk to low and incorporate the flour and milk into the mixture. Make sure you take your time for this step as well starting with about a quarter of the flour and the milk, then the next quarter and so on. Spread half the batter across the bottom of the prepared pan. Set the other half aside. If you use two pans the other half of the batter can be spread across the bottom of the second pan.
5) Beat the egg whites on high until they are stiff. Slowly incorporate the sugar whisking on high until the sugar has dissolved in the egg whites.
6) Spread half the egg white-sugar mixture on the batter in the prepared pan. It should look like waves. Sprinkle the slices almonds on the top. If you use two springforms do the same with the other half of the egg white-sugar mixture. If not, set aside for later.
7) Bake for 25 to 30 minutes until the meringue has a bit of color. If you are using one pan at a time wait until the cake is cool, remove and use the pan to bake the other layer.
8) Cut the fruit into small pieces. (Drain if you use canned fruit.)
9) Now beat the whipping cream, Whip It and vanilla sugar on a high setting until stiff. Fold the fruit slowly into the whipped cream.
10) Transfer one of the cake layers to a cake stand or larger plate. Put a cake ring around the bottom layer of the cake. Cut the top layer into cake slices to make it easier to cut the whole cake later.
11) Put the whipped cream with fruit onto the bottom layer of the cake. Then transfer the cake slices for the top layer on by one.
Enjoy your Cloud Torte with family and friends!
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