“Paris on Fire” Layered Walnut & Banana Cream Cake

INGREDIENTS

2 Cake Layers:

4 eggs

4 tablespoons sugar

4 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

Walnut Meringue:

7 egg whites

12 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon flour

200 g roasted and ground walnuts

Cream Filling:

7 egg yolks

200 g sugar

500 ml milk

5 tablespoons flour (or cornstarch)

250 g butter (or margarine)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 bananas

Syrup:

100 ml water

4 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons rum

Glaze:

200 ml whipping cream

2 tablespoons cocoa powder

Colorful and cocoa sprinkles for decoration

Servings: —
Preparation Time: Over 120 minutes

METHOD – “Paris on Fire” Cake

Cake Layers:
In a bowl, beat 2 egg whites until stiff with a pinch of salt. Add 2 tablespoons of sugar, then gently fold in 2 tablespoons of flour mixed with 1 tablespoon of cocoa. Mix well and spread the batter into a greased and parchment-lined round cake pan (24 cm in diameter). Bake for about 15 minutes.

Repeat with the remaining ingredients to bake the second layer.

Walnut Meringue:
Beat the 7 egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff. Add the sugar, then gently fold in the flour mixed with coarsely ground roasted walnuts. Pour the mixture into the same pan and bake until golden brown on top.

Cream Filling:
Beat the 7 egg yolks with the sugar. Mix 100 ml cold milk with the starch or flour, and bring the remaining 400 ml of milk to a boil. Gradually add the cold milk mixture to the hot milk on the stove, then pour this mixture over the egg yolk foam while stirring continuously.

Place the pot back on low heat (or over a double boiler if your pot doesn’t have a thick base), stirring until the mixture thickens. Remove from heat and let it cool. If it becomes lumpy, use a hand blender to smooth it out.

In a separate bowl, cream the soft room-temperature butter. Gradually add the cooled egg mixture, spoon by spoon, mixing continuously as if making mayonnaise. Stir in the vanilla extract and the mashed bananas.

Syrup:
Mix the water and sugar and simmer on low heat for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, add the rum, and let it cool. Use this syrup to soak the two cocoa layers and the walnut meringue.

Glaze:
Whip the cream until stiff, then add the cocoa powder and continue mixing until fully combined.