Savory Meringue-Topped Cake with Black Pepper & Hot Sauce: The Gateau de Bayou

I can’t resist. I have to share this with you. If you subscribe to the Catholic Foodie newsletter, then you have probably already seen this. But I just couldn’t resist sharing it here.

This recipe comes by way of my good friend Patrick Moore. And this is the first cake I have come across that lists black pepper and hot sauce in its ingredients! Not only does it list hot sauce, but it lists one of my favorites: Crystal Hot Sauce! Now, dat’s what I’m talkin’ about!

Have you ever had a cake with black pepper and hot sauce in it? I haven’t. But I sure do want to try one now! Goodness, this sounds GOOD!

How does it look to you? Want to try a bite? Ever had any other cakes with interesting ingredients? I’d love to know! Comment below!

GATEAU DE BAYOU

Servings: Serves 16–20

Ingredients

Cake:

• 2 pieces of fresh ginger (each 4 inches long), peeled and grated
• 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter , softened
• 3 3/4 cups and 3 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. kosher salt
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 1 2/3 cups Steen’s 100% pure cane syrup (available at steensyrup.com)
• 1 1/3 cups vegetable oil or peanut oil
• 1 1/4 cups packed light brown sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 2 tsp. hot sauce , such as Crystal

Meringue:

• 4 large egg whites , at room temperature
• 1 tsp. kosher salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup light corn syrup

Directions

Note: Browning the meringue requires a blowtorch; alternatively, leave off the meringue and serve with butter pecan ice cream or extra cane syrup.

To make cake: Combine ginger and 1 1/3 cups water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes. Set a fine-mesh sieve over a bowl and strain ginger through sieve, pressing with a spoon; discard pulp and let ginger water cool.

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 10-inch Bundt pan (without nonstick lining) with butter. Dust pan with 3 tablespoons flour, tapping out excess.

Whisk together 3 3/4 cups flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and pepper in bowl.

Combine 1 1/3 cups cane syrup, oil, brown sugar, and ginger water in the bowl of a standing mixer; whisk with a handheld whisk until blended. Whisk in eggs, one at a time. Add hot sauce and flour mixture; attach bowl to a mixer with paddle attachment; beat on low speed until batter is smooth, about 1 1/2 minutes, scraping bowl with a rubber spatula. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake 50 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean. Let cake cool on wire rack 10 minutes; then unmold cake onto rack. With a thin wooden skewer, poke holes in top of cake about 1 inch apart. Brush cake with 1/3 cup cane syrup. Let cool.

To make meringue: In a stand mixer with whisk attachment, beat egg whites, salt, and 1/4 cup sugar on medium-high speed until soft peaks form.

Combine remaining 3/4 cup sugar and 1/3 cup water in small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, swirling pan occasionally to dissolve sugar. Cook until syrup is dark amber, about 10 minutes. Stir in corn syrup; mixture will bubble vigorously. Cook, without stirring, until syrup is 240° on a digital thermometer.

With mixer on low speed, pour syrup into egg white mixture; don’t let syrup touch whisk. Increase speed to high and beat until meringue is thick enough to spread, about 2 minutes. While meringue is still warm, spread over cake with a large spatula, making peaks and swirls. With a crème brûlée torch, brown meringue. Serve at room temperature.

NOTE: This recipe comes by way of my good friend Patrick Moore. Many thanks, Patrick!

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Image courtesy of Roboppy on Flickr.com.