Today’s Spotlight is on Sacher Tortes.

Sacher torte is a chocolate cake, or torte, of Austrian origin. It is one of the most famous Viennese culinary specialties.

The cake is made up of three layers of chocolate sponge cake with apricot jam in between and on top. It is covered in dark chocolate glaze and is often served with unsweetened whipped cream. The original cake is still sold at the Hotel Sacher in Vienna.

The cake is described as:

• Delicious
• Rich and moist
• Denser than a usual sponge cake
• Warm undertones
• Covered in a buttery ganache.

The original Sacher torte has two layers of apricot jam, while Demel’s version only has one layer.

 

History

Sacher Torte is a famous Viennese chocolate cake that was invented in 1832 by Franz Sacher, a 16-year-old Austrian apprentice pastry chef for the court of Prince Metternich in Vienna. The prince wanted a special dessert for his guests, but the court pastry chef was sick. Sacher stepped in and created his own recipe, which became very popular.

The Sacher torte is also famous because it’s a gastronomic symbol of Austria. It’s one of the most copied desserts by pastry shops, but the original recipe is still kept in Vienna.

In English, “Sacher torte” means a round, flat chocolate cake that’s originally from Austria. It’s made in two layers with a thin layer of apricot jam in between them and is covered in chocolate icing. It’s usually served with whipped cream.

The name “Sacher torte” is a combination of the inventor’s surname, Sacher, and the German word for cake, Torte.

 

Sacher torte vs Chocolate Cake

Sacher torte is a chocolate cake that’s denser than a regular sponge cake. It’s made up of three layers of chocolate sponge cake with apricot jam in between and on top. The cake is covered in dark chocolate glaze and is often served with unsweetened whipped cream.

Here are some ingredients for Sacher torte:

• 90 g dark chocolate, chopped.
• 75 g butter, softened.
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 5 tbsp caster/superfine sugar
• 100 g egg whites (about 3 egg whites)
• 5 tbsp plain/all-purpose flour
• 3 tbsp corn flour/cornstarch
• 2 tsp cocoa powder

Here are some ingredients for chocolate cake:

• 1 ¾ cup 250g all-purpose flour
• ⅔ cup 56g cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup 200g granulated sugar
• ½ cup 110g packed light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• ½ cup 120ml vegetable oil

 

Here are some fun facts about the Sacher torte:

• The Hotel Sacher ships over 360,000 Sacher tortes around the world.
• It takes about 1.2 million eggs, 30 tons of flour, 37 tons of apricot jam, and 25 tons of butter to make that many cakes.
• The hotel’s kitchen staff still hand makes the cakes using the original recipe.
• The hotel keeps the original handwritten recipe in a safe.
• The icing is rumored to be a blend of three chocolates from Germany and Belgium.
• In 1888, the Hotel Sacher sold between 200 and 400 Sacher tortes daily.
• Today, the hotel produces almost 1,000 Sacher tortes every day.

 

The exact original recipe remains a secret but this it the recipe that the secret keepers will allow out:

INGREDIENTS

Cake

• 130 g dark couverture chocolate (min. 55% cocoa content)
• 1 Vanilla Pod
• 150 g softened butter
• 100g Icing sugar.
• 6 Eggs
• 100 g Castor sugar
• 140 g Plain wheat flour

 

OTHER

Fat and flour for springform

• 200 g apricot jam
• 200 g castor sugar
• 150 g dark couverture chocolate (min. 55% cocoa content) Unsweetened whipped cream to garnish

 

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 170°C. Line the base of a springform with baking paper, grease the sides, and dust with a little flour.
2. Melt couverture over boiling water. Let cool slightly.
3. Slit vanilla pod lengthwise and scrape out seeds. Using a hand mixer with whisks, beat the softened butter with the icing sugar and vanilla seeds until bubbles appear.
4. Separate the eggs. Whisk the egg yolks into the butter mixture one by one. Now gradually add melted couverture chocolate. Beat the egg whites with the castor sugar until stiff, then place on top of the butter and chocolate mixture. Sift the flour over the mixture, then fold in the flour and beaten egg whites.
5. Transfer the mixture to the springform, smooth the top, and bake in the oven (middle rack) for 10–15 minutes, leaving the oven door a finger’s width ajar. Then close the oven and bake for approximately 50 minutes. (The cake is done when it yields slightly to the touch.)
6. Remove the cake from the oven and loosen the sides of the springform. Carefully tip the cake onto a cake rack lined with baking paper and let cool for approximately 20 minutes. Then pull off the baking paper, turn the cake over, and leave on rack to cool completely.
7. Cut the cake in half horizontally. Warm the jam and stir until smooth. Brush the top of both cake halves with the jam and place one on top of the other. Brush the sides with the jam as well.
8. To make the glaze, put the castor sugar into a saucepan with 125 ml water and boil over high heat for approximately 5 minutes. Take the sugar syrup off the stove and leave to cool a little. Coarsely chop the couverture, gradually adding it to the syrup, and stir until it forms a thick liquid.

 

Celebrating Sacher Tortes

National Sacher torte Day is celebrated annually on December 5. The day is set aside to appreciate the cake and how it has satisfied millions of people for hundreds of years. This day is a good time to try buying or making a Sacher torte. Let us know in the comments which route you take to make this historic cake.