Garash cake - The sweetest kind of sweet

Here’s what you will need to make Garash cake, and then let’s talk about why make this cake.

For the cake: 6 egg whites; 250 grams walnuts; 1 cup powdered sugar; 1 teaspoon flour.
For the chocolate ganache: 250 grams dark chocolate; 200 grams whipping cream; ½ cup sugar.
For the chocolate icing: 100 grams dark chocolate; 1 teaspoon avocado oil.

For cake lovers and for all those who love a good chocolate cake, Garash is the sweetest kind of sweet and the ultimate chocolate cake to prepare for any occasion, and this right here is the main reason to have a go at making it.

Garash is made without flour and is arranged in layers of walnut meringue crust and rich chocolate filling. Decadent chocolate icing envelops the cake and, traditionally, only green-dyed chopped almonds decorate it. But you can cheat with some chopped pistachios or other types of nuts.

Here’s a simple garash cake recipe to follow.

First, make the chocolate cream:

Break the chocolate into pieces and melt over a bain marie.
Heat the cream with the sugar to dissolve the sugar and add the mixture to the melted chocolate, mixing until all ingredients are fully incorporated.

Then make the cake batter:

Start by preheating the oven to 320°F or 160°
Blend the walnuts with the sugar in a food processor until finely ground. The sugar will prevent the walnuts from releasing oil.
Beat the egg whites with a hand mixer until foamy. Make sure you don’t beat too long as this will cause the eggs to stiffen and the crust to become crumbly.
Add the blended walnuts to the egg whites, and also add the 1 teaspoon of flour now and gently fold by hand using a silicone spatula.

Now bake the batter:

Use an 8-inch cake form and parchment paper to line its bottom and sides. Grease the parchment paper with oil very well because the batter is sticky and greasing will make it easier to remove the cake from the form.
Divide batter into 4 equal amounts and bake each amount for 10 to 12 minutes to obtain 4 cake layers.

Assemble the cake:

In a spring form place the first layer of cake and spread chocolate cream generously. Repeat this step with every other cake layer, making sure you leave enough filling to finish the top layer and also to spread on the sides of the cake.
Store in the refrigerator until the cake cools and the chocolate hardens.

Make the icing:

Break the chocolate into pieces and melt over a bain marie.
Add 1 teaspoon of neutral tasting oil for a glossy look.
Finally, take the cake out of the refrigerator, cover with the chocolate ganache, and decorate either with green-dyed chopped almonds or chopped pistachios.

Garash cake comes from Bulgaria where it is a popular dessert.

Often sold in bakeries and patisseries, it’s also traditional in Bulgaria to make this cake on special occasions. Garash is a lighter alternative to other cakes and even other versions of chocolate cake due to being flour-less but still packed with generous amounts of chocolate.

Serve a decently sized piece of Garash cake with espresso or tea.