Festive chocolate buttercream cake

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 6 egg yolks
• 6 egg whites
• 210 g sugar
• 105 g flour, sifted
• 105 g cornstarch
• 2 packets of vanilla sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 500 ml milk
• 2 packets of vanilla sugar
• 2 pinches lemon peel, untreated, grated
• 1 pinch of salt
• 4 egg yolks
• 120 g sugar
• 60 g flour
• 500 g butter, room temperature
• 240 g powdered sugar
• 2 packets of vanilla sugar
• 2 tbsp rum or amaretto
• 50 g cocoa powder
• Chocolate sprinkles or hazelnuts, chopped etc.

Instructions

Working time approx. 1 hour; Rest time approx. 5 hours; Total time approx. 6 hours

For the sponge cake: It’s best to bake it the day before. (This makes it easier to divide later). Preheat the oven to 200°C (top/bottom heat). Beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff peaks form. Then beat the egg yolks with the sugar and vanilla sugar for about 3 minutes until frothy. Fold in the stiff peaks form. Mix the flour, cornstarch and baking powder, sift them over the cake and carefully fold them in. Bake for about 25-30 minutes in a 28cm (11″) tin (bottom lined with baking paper). Cover with baking paper if it’s getting too dark towards the end of the baking time. Turn out onto a wire rack and let cool. The next day, cut it in half to make 3 cake layers. (You can also add cocoa to 1/3 of the batter and bake it separately. Then the next day you only need to halve the light layer. This will give you 2 light layers and 1 dark layer.) For the cream: 400g milk, 2 packs. Bring the vanilla sugar, lemon zest, and a pinch of salt to a boil. Meanwhile, mix 100 ml of milk with 4 egg yolks, 120 g sugar, and 60 g flour thoroughly (best done with a hand mixer). Stir the boiling milk into the egg mixture, pour it back into the saucepan, and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly. Allow the cream to cool, stirring frequently. Cream 500 g butter with the icing sugar until fluffy. Add the cooled cream, 2 packets of vanilla sugar, 50 g cocoa, and 4 tablespoons of rum or amaretto, and mix everything well until a smooth mixture forms. (For decorative purposes, the cream can also be mixed without the cocoa first, setting some of the light buttercream aside.) Spread about 1/4 of the cream on the first cake layer, place the second layer on top, spread another 1/4 of the cream on top, and place the last layer on top. Now cover the top and sides of the cake with the remaining buttercream. Now you can add your own decorative elements. For example, decorate the edge with toasted hazelnut pieces, add decorative dots of light buttercream to the top, decorate with chocolate sprinkles, scatter chocolates, etc. Your imagination is the limit. Then refrigerate the cake for at least 5 hours.