Title: Walnut Cake (Engadiner Nusstorte)
Ingredients:
- 3 all-purpose flour
- 1/4 sugar
- 1/8 salt
- 1/2 butter
- 1 egg
- 2 lemon peel
- 1 dark rum
- 3 honey
- 1 heavy cream
- 2 kirsch
- 1 1/3 sugar
- 3 walnuts
- 1 egg
Instructions:
1. In a large, chilled bowl combine the flour, 1/4 cup sugar, salt and butter. With your finger tips rub the flour and fat together until they look like flakes of coarse meal. Do not let the mixture become oily.
2. Mix the egg, lemon peel and rum together with a fork and pour over the flour mixture all at once. Toss together lightly and gather the dough into a ball, kneading it with your hands until it forms a compact mass.
3. Dust lightly with flour, wrap in wax paper, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours before using.
4. Preheat oven to 350*. Break off about three quarters of the dough and, on a lightly floured surface, pat it into a rough circle about 1 inch thick.
5. Dust a little flour over and under it and roll it out from the center to within an inch of the far edge of the pastry. Lift the dough and turn it clockwise about 2 inches; roll again from the center to within an inch or so of the far edge.
6. Repeat- lifting, turning, rolling-until the circle is about 1/8 inch thick and 12 inches in diameter. If the dough sticks, lift it gently with a metal spatula and sprinkle a little flour under it.
7. Drape the dough over the rolling pin, lift it up, and unroll it slackly over a 9- inch springform pan. Gently press the dough into the bottom and around the sides of the pan, to make a shell 1 inch deep, being careful not to stretch it, or it will contract as it bakes.
8. Combine any scraps with the remaining piece of dough, gather into a ball and wrap in wax paper. Refrigerate it and the pastry-lined springform while you prepare the filling.
9. In a small pan heat the cream until small bubbles appear around the edge. Cover and set aside off the heat. Pour the 1 1/3 cup sugar into a 2- to 3-quart saucepan, set it over moderate heat and, stirring constantly, let the sugar melt into a smooth syrup.
10. Then tipping the pan back and forth almost constantly, simmer the syrup until it turns a pale golden brown. Pour the reserved warm cream into the syrup in a slow thin stream, stirring constantly. When the mixture is smooth remove the pan from the heat and stir in the honey, kirsch, and nuts.
11. Pour the filling into the lined springform pan, spreading it and smoothing the top with a metal spatula. With a pastry brush, lightly coat the rim of the pastry with the 1 egg combined with 2 Tblsp. milk, and beaten lightly.
12. Roll out the ball of refrigerated dough into a rectangle about 5 inches wide and 10 1/2 inches long. With a pastry wheel or sharp knife, cut the rectangle into 10 strips about 1/2 inch wide.
13. Cover the filling with a criss-crossing lattice of the pastry strips. Trim off the excess dough and pinch the ends of the lattice strips to secure them to the moistened rim.
14. Brush the lattice with the remaining egg and milk mixture. Then bake the torte in the middle of the oven for 40-45 minutes, or until the filling is firm and the crust is crisp and golden.
15. Remove the torte from the oven and cool to room temperature before removing the sides of the pan. Cut the torte into wedges and serve it accompanied, if you like, by a bowl of unsweetened whipped cream.