Mokka
A “mokka” is a Belgian classic. You’ll also find it in France as a “gâteau à la crème au beurre”, but this is usually made without the coffee.
It’s made out of sponge cake layers, each one covered in a coffee flavoured buttercream. Typically, it is covered with more buttercream but it can also be covered with a chocolate glaze, making it more like a “javanais” or “opéra” (though less delicate).
This recipe makes a 28 cm cake.
This makes too much syrup for this recipe, but you can easily keep the excess in the fridge, or freeze it.
- 1 l water
- 500 g white sugar
- 1 lemon (zest)
- 1 vanilla pod
- 2 star anise
- 1 cinnamon stick (optional)
- rum or other alcohol (optional)
- zest the lemon
- split the vanilla pod and scrape out the seeds
- add everything (including the pod) to a pan
- bring to a boil
- boil/simmer for 15 minutes
- cool down completely
- 28 cm springform
- sieve
- stand mixer
- 7 whole eggs
- 210 g white sugar
- 210 g flour
- preheat the oven to 180 °C
- add the whole eggs and sugar to the stand mixer bowl
- whisk for 5 minutes at maximum speed
- whisk for 15 minutes at medium speed, until doubled and whipped into a “ruban”
- sift in the flour
- use a spatula to very gently mix in the flour
- do not overmix
- generously grease the springform and dust with flour, line the bottom with baking paper
- bake for 25 minutes (until a knife comes out cleanly)
- stand mixer
- 500 g softened butter
- 400 g white sugar
- 10 cl water
- 10 egg yolks (about 170 g)
- coffee extract
- add the egg yolks to the bowl of the stand mixer
- beat the yolks at medium speed
- add the sugar and water to a pan
- heat up to 114 °C (up to 118 °C maximum)
- while still beating the eggs, slowly drizzle in the sugar water
- beat at maximum speed until cooled down, the result looks a bit like a sabayon
- at medium speed, slowly add in the butter spoon by spoon, wait until each spoonful is mixed in
- add in the coffee extract (2 tsp is usually enough)
- continue beating for 3 minutes until creamy
If you want to lighten up the buttercream, you can add an Italian meringue.
- add 40 g of sugar and 15 ml of water to a pan
- heat up to 114 °C (up to 118 °C maximum)
- whip 1 egg white and 10 g of sugar on high speed
- add the sugar water to the egg white bit by bit, until cooled
- add the meringue to the buttercream at the very end
Experiment: add the egg white and sugar to a bowl, mix au bain-marie until 50 °C, continue beating off the heat until cooled down (~10 minutes).
- flaked almonds
- spread out the flaked almonds on a dish
- microwave at one-minute intervals and stir in between until evenly toasted and golden
- slice the génoise in two or three layers
- brush syrup onto the bottom layer (fairly generously)
- add a layer of the buttercream
- do the same for each layer
- coat the sides in buttercream as well
- decorate with the flaked almonds
You can also replace (part of) the almonds with brésilienne nuts.