Gluten Free Oreo Cakesters Style Pies
Ingredients
For the cakes
6 tablespoons (84 g) unsalted butter, chopped
2 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
1 1/2 cups (210 g) all purpose gluten free flour (I used Better Batter)
3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum (omit if your blend already contains it)
2 tablespoons (18 g) cornstarch
1 cup (80 g) unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Hershey’s Special Dark)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup (100 g) granulated sugar
1/2 cup (109 g) packed light brown sugar
1 egg (50 g, weighed out of shell) plus 2 egg whites (50 g) at room temperature, beaten
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups (10 fluid ounces) milk, at room temperature
For the Swiss meringue filling
1 1/4 cups (250 g) granulated sugar
1/2 cup (4 ounces) water
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
2 egg whites (50 g) at room temperature
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
12 tablespoons (168 g) unsalted butter, cubed and kept cool (but not cold)
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line rimmed baking sheets with unbleached parchment paper and set aside.
Make the batter for the cakes. In a medium-size, heat-safe bowl, place the chopped butter and chopped chocolate. Melt over a pot of simmering water, stirring occasionally, or in the microwave in 30-second bursts at 60% power, until melted and smooth. Set the bowl aside to cool briefly. In a large bowl, place the flour, xanthan gum, cornstarch, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt and granulated sugar, and whisk to combine well. Add the brown sugar and whisk, working out any lumps. Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the melted chocolate and butter, egg and egg whites, vanilla and milk, mixing to combine after each addition. The batter should be thick and glossy.
Transfer the cake batter to a large pastry bag fitted with a large, plain piping tip (about 1/2-inch in diameter) and pipe mounds of batter about 1 1/2-inches in diameter, about 1 1/2-inches apart from one another. With wet fingers, press the mounds of batter into flat disks about 1/2-inch thick. Place in the center of the preheated oven and bake until the cakes spring back when pressed in the center (about 10 minutes). Remove from the oven and allow to cool on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
While the cakes are cooling, make the filling. In a medium-size, heavy-bottom saucepan, place the sugar, water and salt, and whisk to combine. Clip a candy thermometer to the side of the saucepan and cook the sugar mixture over medium-high heat, without stirring it, until it reaches the softball stage, 240°F. Remove from the heat and set it aside to cool briefly. Place the egg whites in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment attachment or a large bowl with a hand mixer. Whip the egg whites on medium-high speed until beginning to thicken. Add the cream of tartar, and continue to whip until stiff, but not dry, peaks form. With the mixer speed on low, pour the warm sugar mixture down the side of the mixer (making sure the sugar doesn’t hit the whisk). Once all of the sugar mixture has been added, turn the mixer speed up to high and beat until the mixture is thick, glossy, at least doubled in size and holds a stiff peak (about 5 minutes). This is Marshmallow Fluff, and can be used on its own as filling. To make a modified Swiss Meringue Buttercream (a more stable filling), continue to the next step.
Once the outside of the mixing bowl is cool to the touch, switch to the paddle attachment and begin adding the cubed, cool butter while the mixer is on medium speed. Continue to beat until all of the butter is added and the mixture is silky smooth and thick. If the mixture looks curdled, continue to beat for a while longer until the butter is smooth (the “curdles” are actually butter that is too cold). If the mixture is runny, place the bowl in the refrigerator for 15 minutes and beat again.
Assemble the cakes into pairs and invert one cake of each pair. Transfer the filling to a large pastry bag fitted with a large (1/2-inch) plain piping tip and pipe about 2 tablespoons of filling onto the inverted cake of each pair. Place the other cake on top and press to sandwich.