baumtorte  tree cake
butter bottom and sides of a 10x3 inch springform pan
dust with flour , shake out excess
line bottom of pan with double thickness of baking parchment
heat oven to 200f
heat 2 cups water to boiling in small saucepan
add pistachios
boil 20 seconds
drain immediately
spread in single layer on double thickness of paper toweling
while still warm , peel pistachios by pressing between thumb and index finger
or use a small knife
spread pistachios on baking sheet and bake until dry , about 20 minutes
cool thoroughly
grind very fine in nut grinder or chop very fine with a food processor
press apricot preserves through medium - fine sieve into small bowl with the back of a wooden spoon
discard any skins left in sieve
reserve sieved preserves
place almond paste in a smaller bowl
beat in half and half , 1 tablespoons at a time , until mixture is light and fluffy and has consistency of mashed potatoes , about 4 minutes
reserve
beat butter in large mixer bowl until light in color , about 2 minutes
fold in flour , cornstarch , rum , vanilla , and lemon zest with rubber spatula until completely blended
gradually fold in almond paste mixture
reserve batter
place egg yolks in large mixer bowl , and gradually beat in 1 / 2 cup of the sugar at medium speed until mixture is light in color and forms a slowly dissolving ribbon when beaters are lifted , about 5 minutes
fold into batter with rubber spatula until completely blended
reserve
adjust broiler rack to accommodate prepared cake pan
top of pan should be about 1-inch from broiler
place egg whites and salt in clean large mixer bowl
beat on low speed unrtil soft peaks form
gradually beat in remaining 1 / 2 cup sugar , 2 tablespoons at a time
increase speed to medium and beat until whites are stiff but not dry
fold whites , one fourth at a time , into reserved batter until completely blended
to make torte , spoon a scant 1 / 4 of the batter into cake pan
brush or spread to edges of pan with pastry brush or small flexible spatula
place cake pan under broiler
broil until batter is very lightly browned and resembles a cooked crepe , about 3 minutes , depending in temperature of broiler and position of broiler rack
brush another scant 1 / 4 cup batter over broiled layer
broil as above
brush second layer with a thin film of apricot preserves to within 1 / 2 -inch of edge
sprinkle with about 1 teaspoons ground pistachios
repeat the layering and broiling process , coating every other layer with preserves and pistachios , until all the batter has been used
you should have about 30 layers in cake pan
cool torte on wire rack to room temperature
refrigerate , covered , overnight in springform pan
reserve the remaining apricot preserves , covered
you should have about 1 cup
reserve remaining pistachios
you should have about 5 tablespoons remove sides from springform pan
center an 8-inch template on top of torte
holding blade of thin sharp knife downward at a 30 degree angle , slice away the sides of the torte from the template to outer rim of the base
torte will now have 8-inch top and 10-inch base with slanted sides
trim sides until smooth
invert torte
remove springform base , and peel off parchment
place wire rack over torte and invert again
heat remaining apricot preserves in small heavy saucepan over medium-low heat until candy thermometer registers about 225 degrees , about 10 minutes
using flat metal spatula , immediately spread preserves evenly over top and sides of torte
let stand until preserves are cooled and set , about 30 minutes
make chocolate glaze
pour slightly cooled chocolate glaze over top of torte
using flat metal spatula , quickly spread glaze as evenly as possible over top and side of torte , apricot glaze should be completely covered
let torte stand until glaze is almost set , about 15 minutes
decorate torte with remaining ground pistachios , as follows: tear off four 3-inch strips of waxed paper
place them under edges of torte to catch any spillings
sprinkle a 1 / 2 inch border of pistachios along top edge of torte
carefully tilt torte at a slight angle and gently press remaining pistachios over sides of torte with small spatula or your fingers
re-use any pistachios that have fallen onto the waxed paper
carefully transfer torte to serving platter with large metal spatula
chocolate glaze:
stir butter , rum , corn syrup and salt in small heavy saucepan over low heat until butter is melted
increase heat to medium and boil mixture , stirring constantly , about 1 minute
remove from heat
stir in chocolate until completely melted
cool at room temperature until mixture coats a spoon , about 5 minutes
use at once