posted by Pat T 04-17-100 12:02 PM
Tish Pishti (Soaked Nut Cake)
(Adapted from "Light Jewish Holiday Desserts," by Penny Wantuck Eisenberg, William Morrow & Company, 1999).
For the Cake:
1 cup sliced almonds
3/4 cup matzo meal
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. grated orange zest
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
4 large whole eggs
6 large egg whites
For the orange soaking syrup:
3 cups orange juice
1-1/4 cups granulated sugar
For the garnish:
3 Tblsp. sliced almonds
To make the cake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In a food processor, combine 3/4 cup of the almonds with the matzo meal, 1/2 cup of the sugar, zest and cinnamon, and pulse until the nuts are ground. Add the whole eggs to the food processor and continue to pulse until they are fully incorporated. Carefully transfer the almond mixture to a large bowl and stir in the remaining 1/4 cup almonds.
Using an electric mixer, beat the egg whites and the remaining 1/2 cup sugar until they are stiff. Set aside.
Fold the egg whites into the almond mixture until just combined. Scrape the batter into a greased 9- x 13-inch baking pan, place in the oven and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, about 25 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the syrup. In a medium saucepan over high heat, combine the orange juice and sugar and bring the mixture to a boil. (The sugar will dissolve). Set aside.
Remove the cake from the oven, turn it out onto a cutting board and cut into 24 squares. Return the squares to the pan. Pour 1/2 of the syrup over the cake squares and set them aside to soak for 10 minutes. Turn the squares over and pour over the remaining syrup. Garnish each square with 3 almond slices to form a Y-shaped pattern. Cover the squares and set aside at room temperature to soak for 3 hours. Serve at room temperature.
Yield: 24 cake squares.