Ghirellina

Ingredients

For the cream:

Sugar 125 g

Water 40 g

Egg yolk 70 g

Butter 125 g

Mascarpone cheese 125 g

For the sponge cake:

Egg yolk 45 g

Egg 115 g

Sugar 115 g

Egg white 70 g

Sugar 15 g

Flour 70 g

For the soaking:

Coffee 150 ml

Sugar 1 tbsp

For the glaze:

Chocolate 100 g

Cocoa powder 50 g

The combination of a moist, syrup-soaked sponge cake and sweet mascarpone buttercream is incredibly harmonious. A crisp chocolate glaze adds intrigue and gives the roulade a finished, marketable appearance.

Prepare the sponge cake glaze ahead of time: mix coffee and sugar and cool to room temperature.

In a small saucepan, bring water to a boil and add sugar. Cook the syrup over medium heat, stirring constantly. The syrup is ready at 121°C (250°F). Determining the right temperature without a thermometer is difficult, and it's very easy to overcook the syrup, which will inevitably lead to crystallization of the sugar, making it virtually impossible to use in the cream. But there's always a solution. Perform the "thick thread" test: scoop up some syrup with a spoon – the finished syrup will flow from the spoon in the form of a thick thread.

Whisk the yolks and carefully pour in the sugar syrup in a thin stream, continuing to beat with a mixer. Continue beating until the mixture thickens and increases in volume. The finished cream is thick and light. Mine usually takes about 4-5 minutes, beating on medium speed. Chill the yolk mixture in the refrigerator. Ideally, 30-60 minutes.

Whisk the warm butter lightly and add the mascarpone, 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition. Beat until smooth. Combine with the yolk mixture and beat again.

Whisk the yolks and eggs with 115 g of sugar. Beat the whites with 15 g of sugar until stiff peaks form. Sift the flour into the yolk mixture. Mix thoroughly. Carefully fold in the whites, one spoon at a time. Mix from top to bottom, DO NOT beat. The mixture should be smooth and fairly runny (if you lift the spoon, the batter will slowly drip off), about the same as pancake batter.

Pour the batter onto a parchment-lined baking sheet (the batter should be no more than 1 cm thick). Bake in a preheated oven at 240°C (450°F) for 4-5 minutes. Check for doneness with a toothpick. Place a towel on the counter. Invert the baked cake onto the towel, remove the parchment paper, and cover with a second towel. Let cool for 20 minutes.

For the glaze, melt 100 g of chocolate in the microwave or in a double boiler.

Remove the towel from the cake and place it on parchment paper. Generously soak it with coffee syrup. Spread a thin layer of frosting on top. Roll the cake as tightly as possible, using parchment paper. It's okay if some of the frosting oozes out. Place the cake in the freezer for 1 hour, still covered with parchment paper.

After an hour, remove the slightly frozen cake, remove the parchment paper, trim any rough edges, and scrape off any remaining frosting. Using a pastry brush or thin spatula, brush warm melted chocolate onto the roll (it sets instantly). Sprinkle with cocoa powder. Cut into 3-4 cm thick portions. Refrigerate for 4-6 hours.

The mascarpone and butter should be at room temperature. The cream can be made ahead of time (it can easily "rest" in the refrigerator for a couple of days).

You can bake the cake layer slightly thicker or thinner (as you prefer); this won't affect the quality of the "rolling." We preferred a layer of cake about 1 cm thick; it was more fluffy. A thinner layer will be denser.

The cakes can be sliced before applying the icing. Since the icing contains only chocolate, it is not elastic and risks cracking when cut.

Enjoy!