This Cielo (Heaven) cake is delicious. The sponge has more of the consistency of a butter cookie, and the layer of “meringue” with the nuts gives it a delightful crunch. I added raspberry jam and chocolate to provide texture and contrast of flavors. I loved how it looked, and the flavors were so good together.
Like many other cakes from Chile, the Cielo Heaven Cake is famous in the South of Chile and has several layers and fillings. You can be creative and swap your favorite jam, but I recommend going with an acidic one to balance the sweetness of the cookie/sponge layers.
I learned the technique to do the giant chocolate shard from the book The Artful Baker, following the author on his blog Cafe Fernando. He is very inspiring, and his book is fantastic. I have done three recipes with excellent results.
I made this cake for my birthday and froze half to enjoy it later without issue. In general, cakes with whipped cream keep a lot fresher if frozen. On the fridge, 2-3 days is the longest I will recommend having it.
You may also be interested in the recipe: Thousand Layer Cake or Mil Hojas.
Print
Cielo (Heaven) Cake
A sophisticated cake with tantalizing flavors and textures.
- Total Time: 2 hours, 30 minutes
- Yield: 20
Ingredients
For the dough
- 470 grams unsalted butter
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 egg
- 230 grams of granulated sugar
- 470 grams of all-purpose flour
For the meringue
- 4 egg whites
- 150 grams of granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon powder
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1 cup finely chopped walnuts
For the filling,
- 2 cups of cold Heavy whipping cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup raspberry jam
- 180 grams of semi-bitter baking chocolate
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F or 180C.
- Beat the butter with the yolks and the egg until they are creamy combined. Add the sugar and flour and continue beating until a soft, sticky dough forms. Spread over parchment paper on circles of 20-24 cm in diameter. Use wet fingers to distribute the dough.
- Beat the egg whites until soft peaks. Mix the sugar, cinnamon, lemon zest, and nuts in a bowl.
- Spread the whipped whites over the dough and sprinkle with the mixture of sugar and nuts.
- Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown. Let cool on a rack. Choose the ugliest circle to decorate and break into pieces.
- Prepare the chocolate layer, melt it in a water bath, and spread it on parchment paper. Cover with another paper and roll. Place on a tray and refrigerate. Unroll; it will break into giant shards.
- Beat the cream until it forms soft peaks, add the vanilla extract, and beat until incorporated.
- Assemble the cake: Place a baked layer over a serving plate. Cover with 3 tablespoons of whipped cream, spread in a thin layer, and place half of the chocolate shards: another baked layer, raspberry jam, cream, baked layer. Repeat.
- Cover the cake with cream and decorate it with the remaining chocolate shards and the broken baked layer.
- Refrigerate until serving. Keeps 3 days. It can be frozen.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Ximena Leal Galle, from the book “Manos del Sur.”
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Category: Cakes
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Chilean
Nutrition
- Serving Size:
- Calories: 528
- Sugar: 29 g
- Sodium: 27.7 mg
- Fat: 35 g
- Saturated Fat: 19.6 g
- Carbohydrates: 50 g
- Fiber: 1.9 g
- Protein: 6.2 g
Keywords: cielo cake
Leave a Reply