High Altitude Bavarian Cream Spice Cake
Fluffy spice cake is soaked with coffee, then topped with luxurious vanilla bean Bavarian cream for a uniquely delicious dessert.
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- Electric Mixer (Stand or Hand-Held)
- 8-inch round cake pan
Ingredients
Bavarian Cream
- 2 tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp corn starch
- ⅛ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- 1 cup + 2 tbsp whole milk
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste
- 1 ½ tbsp cold unsalted butter
- ½ cup cold heavy whipping cream
- 1 ½ tbsp powdered sugar
Spice Cake
- 1 cup + 2 tbsp cake flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ¼ tsp ground allspice
- ⅛ tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg white (save the extra yolk for another use)
- ⅓ cup whole milk
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Coffee
- ¼ cup warm water
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 tsp instant espresso powder or instant coffee
Instructions
Bavarian Cream
- In a saucepan, whisk together the sugar, corn starch and salt, then slowly whisk in the milk, egg yolks and vanilla bean paste.
- Over medium heat, cook the custard while whisking constantly, until the custard starts to bubble and thicken; this should take about 8-10 minutes. Once it begins to thicken, continue to cook and whisk for 1 1/2 minutes.
- Remove the custard from the heat and stir in the butter. Pour the custard through a mesh strainer to strain out any bits of cooked egg, into a bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap resting right against the surface of the custard, and refrigerate for 3 hours, or overnight.
- When you're ready to assemble your cake, use an electric mixer to whip the cream and powdered sugar on medium speed for several minutes, until thick fluffy peaks form that hold their shape.
- Add about 1/3 of the whipped cream to the chilled custard, folding it in with a spatula to loosen up the custard until smooth. Add the rest of the whipped cream, folding it in until you have a fluffy, creamy filling.
Spice Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Spray the bottom of one 8-inch cake pans with non-stick baking spray.
- In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and spices.
- Separately, whisk together the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and whisk just until combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick or cake tester comes out clean, and the top of the cake springs back when gently touched.
- Set the pan on a cooling rack and let cool for 30 minutes.
Coffee
- While the cake is cooling, make the coffee. Combine the water, sugar and espresso powder, stirring until dissolved.
- If you don't have espresso powder, you can replace the water and espresso powder with very strong brewed coffee.
Assembly
- Gently turn the warm cake out of the pan, and set it on a serving plate. Use a chopstick or wooden skewer to poke holes in the cake, then brush the coffee over the cake.
- Cover the cake with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1-2 hours, until well chilled.
- To finish, spread the chilled Bavarian cream on top of the cake.
- Serve the cake immediately, or keep refrigerated until ready to serve.
Notes
Store leftover cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
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