Thriller Cakes

 
Fadrina's Bündner Nusstorte - Swiss walnut cake ("Aargauer Abgründe")

Ingredients (for an approx. 20 cm springform pan):
Dough:
300 g flour
150 g butter
120 g sugar
1 egg
1 pinch of salt
Filling:
150 g to 200 g walnuts
1.5 dl (full) cream
150 g sugar
1 to 2 tbsp honey

Method:
For the dough, mix the flour with the butter, sugar and salt until a crumbly mixture is formed. Add the egg and mix into a smooth dough (do not knead). Put in a cool place.
Heat the cream and honey in a separate pan.
Sprinkle the sugar evenly into a pan. Warm gently over at medium heat. Do not stir the melting sugar but only move the liquid gently back and forth occasionally. Take care, that the caramel does not become too dark. Deglaze with the warm honey cream and add the chopped walnuts . Leave to cool.
Use a third of the dough to line the base of a springform pan. With the second third, fill the edge of the pastry to about to 3 to 4 centimetres. Press the edge well against the base. Pour in the nut-caramel mixture. Place the the overhanging edge of the pastry onto the filling. From the last third oft he dough form a lid fand press the lid on the edge with a fork and prick several times.
Preheat the oven to 180°C. In a convection oven back at 180°C in the lower half of the oven for approx. 40 to 45 minutes. Leave to cool. Carefully remove the edge from the springform pan and place the cake on a wire rack. Leave to cool completely. Serve on the next day or the day after. Wrapped in foil, the cake can be kept for up to two weeks.

Elisabeth's Baileys cake ("Nebel im Aargau“)

Ingredients (for an approx. 26 cm springform pan):
Ingredients for the sponge cake:
300 g flour
3 egg yolks, 3 egg whites
3-4 tbp. water
175 g sugar
1 sachet vanilla sugar
3 tbp. baking powder
Ingredients for the cream:
150g dark chocolate and chocolate powder
2 dl Baileys
½ l cream and 1-2 packets of cream holder
100 g meringue

Method:
Preheat the oven to 175 °C. Whisk the egg yolks and water and add two thirds of the sugar and the vanilla sugar. Continue whisking until it is creamy. Whisk the egg whites with the remaining sugar. Add the egg whites to the egg yolks and add the flour mixed with the baking powder. Gently fold everything into the egg yolk mixture and spread into the pan. Bake for 20 minutes.
The sponge cake is best when used the next day. Cut the sponge cake in two halves. Put the melted chocolate on one side.
Whip the cream with the cream holder. Place one sponge cake base on a cake plate with the chocolate side down and prick several times with a fork. Drizzle half of the Bailey over it and spread half of the cream on top. Place the second sponge cake base on top with the chocolate side down, prick it and drizzle the rest of the Baileys over it. Spread the remaining cream on the top and put the cake in a cool place.
Before serving, break the meringue into pieces and spread on the top of the cake. Dust with chocolate powder.
A big thank you to Ch. Knecht for providing me with her recipe for my crime novel.

Lisa's Basler Kirschenbrottorte (Cherry-bread-cake - "Chriesimord")

Ingredients (for a 24 to 26 cm springform pan):
300 to 350 g leftover bread (toast or "weggli")
500 ml milk
500 g to 600 g plitted cherries
1 vanilla bean
100 g butter
100 g sugar
1 pinch of salt
4 eggs, separated
100 g ground almonds (alternative ground hazelnuts)
a shot kirsch - if you like (Swiss cherry liquour)

Method:
Preheat oven to 180 °C and line the springform pan with baking parchment and butter the sides.
Cube the bread. Cut the vanilla stick along its length and scrape out the pulp. Heat the milk and vanilla in a pot. Remove the vanilla bean, when it's bubbling. Add the bread that it soaks the liquid in the covered pan. In the meantime, melt the butter. Whisk together the 5 egg yolks. Puree the soaked bread with a mixer. Add the melted butter, the whisked egg yolks, the almonds and the pitted cherries. Finally, gently fold in the beaten egg whites with salt.
Pour all in the prepared pan. Bake in the oven for about one hour. When the cake has cooled out dust with icing sugar.
Serving:
Can be served with vanilla ice cream or with whipped cream.

Sonja's Carrot cake ("Rüebliland")

Ingredients (for a 24 to 26 cm springform pan):
250 g carrots, grated
200 g sugar
250 g ground hazelnuts (alternative: ground almonds)
1 pinch of salt
5 eggs, separated
100 g flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 half lemon – peel and juice
½ tsp. cinnamon
pinch of ground cloves
icing sugar
marzipan carrots

Method:
Preheat the oven to 180 °C.
Whisk together the nuts, flour, baking powder. In another large bowl, whisk the 4 egg whites into stiff peaks.
Then whisk together the 5 egg yolks and sugar until you get a pale, yellow paste. Add lemons peel an juice, ground cloves and cinnamon. Mix the carrots into the yolk and sugar paste, and then fold in the dry ingredients. Finally, gently fold in the beaten egg whites and spread into the pan.
Bake for about 40 minutes. The cake is done when you can see it coming away at the sides of the pan, and when you press on the top and it springs back completely. When the cake has cooled, use a simple lemon glaze (icing sugar and lemon juice). Otherwise dust with icing sugar, add some marzipan carrots.

Verena's Easter Pastry ("Liestal Gold")

Ingredients for a round baking tray of 26 cm
Dough:
250 g flour
70 g (cold) butter
½ tsp salt
100 ml water
Filling:
3 dl milk
1 dl cream
80 g raisins (alternative: dark baking chocolate cubes)
3 to 4 tbsp durum wheat semolina
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1 sachet vanilla sugar
3 eggs
2 tbsp sugar, 1 pinch of salt

Method
Quickly combine the flour, butter, salt and water and let the dough rest.
Preheat the oven  to 200 °C. Mix the ingredients for the filling except the raisins. Line the baking tray with baking paper and cover with the dough. Pour the filling onto the dough base and spread the raisins over it. Bake it for 20 to 25 minutes.

Andrina's Swiss Epiphany Cake ("Verschwunden im Aargau")

Ingredients
Dough:
500 g flour
40 g sugar
1-1½ tsp salt, 1-2 sachets of dry yeast
2,5-3 dl lukewarm milk, 75 g soft butter
100 g raisins (alternative chocolate cubes)
1 whole almond (as a organic substitute for the plastic king figure).
Topping:
1 egg yolk ,1 tablespoon milk
20 g almond flakes and 5 g hail sugar

Method
Mix flour, sugar, salt and yeast. Add milk and butter and knead into a smooth dough. Leave to rise at a warm place.
Knead the raisins (alternatively the chocolate cubes) into the dough.
Form a ball from a quarter of the dough and place it on the baking tray lined with baking paper. Divide the rest of the dough into eight
portions and form balls. Put the almond into one of the small balls. Arrange the dough balls around the center. Whisk the egg yolk with 1 tablespoon of milk and brush the cake with it. Sprinkle it with flaked almonds and hail sugar.
Place in a cold oven and bake at 180 °C for about 25 minutes.

Here you will find more thriller recipes from my books: