A sweet/tart compote made from rhubarb and nectarines is the perfect filling for a spring cake. This picture pretty dessert, Rhubarb Nectarine Layered Sponge Cakes, stacked tall and full of flavor, grabs your attention.
Rhubarb Nectarine Layered Sponge Cakes
Moist and springy sponge cake is layered with a stewed rhubarb and nectarine compote flavored with honey and ginger. Not to be forgotten is the luscious sweetened whipped cream which adds light and fluffy richness. Each bite of this dessert combines these three components for an indulgent treat.
Facts about rhubarb
- This spring crop is technically a vegetable.
- While there are savory uses for rhubarb such as pickling, it is most often used in desserts such as pie.
- The flavor of rhubarb is very tart so it is commonly stewed with sugar.
- The vibrant red and pink stalks are the edible part of the plant. The leaves are toxic.
- Fresh rhubarb will have firm stalks.
- Many fruits can be combined with rhubarb to add sweetness.
Compote Ingredients
Making Rhubarb Nectarine compote
Ingredients
- 9 ounces of nectarines, about 3
- 12 ounces of rhubarb
- 1 cup of honey
- 1 ½ teaspoon of grated ginger
How to make compote
The nectarines and rhubarb are cut into ½-inch pieces. Remove the peel of the nectarine if you prefer. Add to a medium saucepan and combine with the honey and grated ginger.
Rhubarb and nectarines combined with honey and ginger.
Cook over medium-high heat. When the compote starts to boil, reduce the heat to medium. Continue to cook for a total of 12-13 minutes. The fruit will break down during the cooking process and the compote will be a peachy pink color. It will continue to thicken as it cools.
Rhubarb Nectarine Compote
What is Pan di Spagna
During an early internship while in cooking school, I worked at an Italian restaurant. Pan di Spagna, an Italian sponge cake, was a favorite dessert. It is a rich and moist cake belying the fact that it has a delicate crumb. This recipe has some tweaks to a traditional recipe.
- Brown butter is added for a touch of nuttiness. Half of a vanilla bean adds a floral flavor.
Brown butter and vanilla bean
- A combination of granulated and brown sugar adds a touch of molasses along with richness.
- The spark of the citrus flavor of orange zest partners well with the rich ingredients.
- A ½ teaspoon of baking powder gives a little leavening lift.
Secrets of making sponge cakes
Sponge cakes depend on air whipped into eggs for leavening. The trick is to whip as much air as possible into the eggs for maximum lift. As the cake bakes in the oven, the air trapped in the batter expands thereby raising the cake.
- When whipping the egg yolks, look for them to triple in volume. The eggs will become a lighter yellow as more air is incorporated. When you have finished whipping the yolks, the batter should fall off the whisk in ribbons, thick and slow.
Whipped Egg Yolks
- When whipping the egg whites, make sure you do not over-whip them. You want them to be glossy and firm. As egg whites are over-whipped they start to look dull.
Whipped Egg Whites
- Use cake flour. Made from soft wheat, cake flour will help create a fine and tender crumb.
- When folding the ingredients into the batter, stir gently so that the air remains trapped in the eggs.
Folding Egg Yolks and Egg Whites Together
- Be careful when spreading the cake batter in the pan. Gingerly use an offset spatula to spread the batter. I nudge the batter into the corners of the sheet pan.
Gently Spread the Batter
- Try to get the batter as even as possible in the pan but don't overdo it. Fudging around too much will deflate the batter.
How to make layered sponge cakes
There are three components of these pretty cakes.
- rhubarb nectarine compote
- Pan di Spagna or sponge cake
- sweetened whipped cream
When the Pan di Spagna has baked for 15 minutes, remove it from the oven. It needs to cool to room temperature.
I cut the cake into 2 ½ -inch circles with a ring mold. You can use a biscuit cutter or even a clean tin can (such as a tuna can) that has the top removed.
Cutting Circles with a Ring Mold
Make sure the rhubarb nectarine compote has cooled. It will melt the whipped cream if too warm.
Add some compote to the bottom layer of sponge cake. I add thin slices of nectarine to the cake, spreading them in a circle for an even layer.
Sweetened whipped cream is the next layer. Add another piece of cake and top with whipped cream. Lastly, three more thin slices of nectarine dipped in the compote are the crown of this layered sponge cake. You can drizzle more compote over the top if you prefer.
Layers of Sponge Cakes
Substitutions
- Use one teaspoon of vanilla as a substitute for a vanilla bean.
- For a deeper flavor, use brown sugar when making the sweetened whipped cream.
- Many different fruits can be used with the rhubarb - peaches, plums, apricots
- You can make one large cake with two layers. Use two 9-inch cake pans, dividing the batter between them. Add the rhubarb nectarine compote and sweetened whipped cream between the layers.
Summer dessert
This recipe is similar to the classic summer dessert of shortcake. Constructed in the same manner, the Rhubarb Nectarine Layered Sponge Cakes offer a different flavor profile.
Rhubarb Nectarine Layered Sponge Cake
Tangy, tart, and sweet, this dessert features the fresh fruit of the season. Though the cake is small, its flavor is not!
Other summer desserts
https://tenpoundcakecompany.com/mini-smores-chocolate-cheesecakes/
https://tenpoundcakecompany.com/baked-plum-and-rye-cobbler/
https://tenpoundcakecompany.com/fresh-strawberry-cupcakes/
https://tenpoundcakecompany.com/mini-strawberry-buttermilk-tarts/
Rhubarb Nectarine Layered Sponge Cakes
Equipment
- 1 small skillet
- 2 small bowls
- 1 sheet pan 11x16
- 1 Mixer
- 2 mixing bowls
- 1 rubber spatula
- 1 offset spatula
- 1 biscuit cutter or ring mold 2½-inch6
- 1 medium saucepan
Ingredients
Pan di Spagna
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter (5 tablespoons for brown butter, 1 tablespoon to prepare the sheet pan.)
- ½ vanilla bean
- 1¼ cups cake flour (6.1 ounces/172 grams)
- 2 tablespoons flour (This is to prepare the sheet pan for baking. You can use cake flour or all-purpose)
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 6 egg yolks
- 8 egg whites
- ¾ cup granulated sugar (6.7 ounces/1990 grams)
- ¼ cup light brown sugar (1.9 ounces/54 grams)
- 1 tablespoon honey (.6 ounce18 grams)
- 1 tablespoon orange zest
Rhubarb Nectarine Compote
- 4 nectarines (12.5 ounces/356 grams)
- 3 cups rhubarb, cut into ½-inch pieces (12.5 ounces/353 grams)
- 1 cup honey (11.7 ounces/330 grams)
- 1½ teaspoons grated ginger
Sweetened Whipped Cream
- 2 cups heavy whipping cream (480 ml)
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°
- Prepare the 11 x 16 sheet pan. Brush the entire surface, bottom and sides, with melted butter. Lay a piece of parchment paper on the pan and brush with melted butter. Sprinkle two tablespoons of flour o to the pan. Shake the pan so that the flour sticks to the butter until the entire surface is covered.
Pan di Spagna
- Brown 5 tablespoons of butter. Add the butter to a small skillet over medium heat. Add ½ of a vanilla bean to the butter. Make sure to cut the vanilla bean open and scrape the seeds into the pan.
- Let the butter melt and start to bubble. As the butter cooks, the milk solids will start to turn brown. When the butter is a golden brown and there is a layer of small-bubbled foam, it is time to remove the butter from the pan. This takes less than 5 minutes. Pour it into a small bowl, scraping the bottom to release the brown bits. If you leave the butter in the pan, it will continue to brown until it is burned. Let the butter cool as you prepare the rest of the recipe.
- Combine and sift the dry ingredients - cake flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- Separate the eggs into two mixing bowls - yolks in one bowl and whites in another.
- Start mixing the egg yolks on high speed. Add the granulated and light brown sugars to the bowl. Once the sugars are incorporated, add the honey and orange zest.
- Mix until the egg yolks have tripled in volume, about 5 minutes. You should see a ribbon of batter dripping off the whisk when you remove it from the bowl. This is a sign the egg yolks have been whipped enough.
- Whip the egg whites, starting slowly until you start to see some bubbles. Gradually increase the mixer speed. Once the egg whites are fluffy and shiny, turn off the mixer. This takes approximately 5 minutes. Don't over whip the egg whites. They will become dry.
- With a rubber spatula, add a small amount of egg whites (about 1 cup) to the egg yolks. Gently fold the whites into the yolks. You are going to bring the yolks up to the center of the bowl over the whites. Slowly and carefully mix in the whites. Continue to add the whites to the yolks in batches until all have been added.
- Make sure as you fold the batter that you are very gentle. You do not want to lose all the air you whipped into the eggs. It is the air that helps to leaven the cake. If the batter is over-worked, the cake will not rise.
- You may see small clumps of whites among the yolks. That is okay since the batter will continue to be folded as more ingredients are added.
- Sprinkle about ⅓ cup of the sifted dry ingredients over the top of the whipped eggs. With the rubber spatula, gently fold in the flour.
- Add the rest of the dry ingredients in small amounts, folding in the batter each time. Make sure there are no hidden streaks of flour in the batter.
- The cooled brown butter is folded into the batter. The butter will want to sink to the bottom of the bowl. Gently incorporate it into the batter, making sure you don't deflate the eggs.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. With an offset spatula, move the batter into the corners of the pan. Make sure you are carefully nudging the batter, not pressing down. Do your best to make sure the batter is evenly spread.
- Put the sheet pan in the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Rotate the pan halfway through the baking time. Remove from the oven when the cake feels springy when touched. You may also see the cake pulling from the sides of the pan.
- After 5 minutes of cooling, take a knife and run it along the sides of the pan to release the cake.
- After the cake has cooled to room temperature, you can cut it with a biscuit cutter or a ring mold if you are making mini layered cakes. You can always use a clean can as a cutter.
Rhubarb Nectarine Compote
- Cut the rhubarb into ½-inch pieces and place in a medium saucepan. Cut 3 nectarines into ½-inch dice. I remove the peel because I don't like it in the compote. This step is not necessary, just my preference. Add to the saucepan with the rhubarb.
- Cut the last nectarine into small slices. Keep these separate.
- Add one cup of honey and the grated ginger to the medium saucepan and start to heat the compote over medium-high heat.
- Once the compote starts to boil, turn the heat down. Cook for 8-9 more minutes. The nectarines and rhubarb should have broken down into a chunky sauce.
- Let the compote cool before using.
Sweetened Whipped Cream
- Add the whipped cream to a mixing bowl. At high speed, whip the cream until it starts to slightly thicken. Add the powdered sugar and continue to whip until you see stiff peaks. The sweetness of the whipped cream is a personal preference. You can always add more sugar.
Assembly
- Make sure all components have cooled before assembling the dessert. Layer the compote on one of the cake circles. Arrange three slices of nectarine that have been dipped in the compote in a circle. Add whipped cream on top of the nectarines.
- Add another layer of cake. Top with more whipped cream.
- The last layer is three thin slices of nectarine. Dip them in the compote then arrange them on top of the whipped cream. Add a little drizzle of the compote and a sprinkle of powdered sugar.
Notes
- Use one teaspoon of vanilla as a substitute for a vanilla bean.
- For a deeper flavor, use brown sugar when making the sweetened whipped cream.
- Many different fruits can be used with the rhubarb - peaches, plums, apricots
- You can make one large cake with two layers. Use two 9-inch cake pans, dividing the batter between them. Add the rhubarb nectarine compote and sweetened whipped cream between the layers.
Nutrition
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