Preheat the oven to 350F/180C. Butter and dust with flour an 8"/20 cm round springform pan.
Beat room temperature eggs, vanilla and sugar in a medium bowl for about 3-5 minutes with an electric mixer until white, foamy and triple in volume.
Fold sifted flour in 3 additions with a spatula, be careful not to deflate the cake batter. If after the addition of the flour the volume goes down significantly, the cake will not rise properly.
Bake in the preheated oven for 15-17 minutes until a cake tester comes out clean. The baked sponge should have risen to at least double the height of the unbaked batter. Cool on a wire rack.
Bring the heavy cream in a saucepan to a boil. Pour the hot cream over chopped white chocolate and stir with a whisk until the chocolate in melted and completely incorporated into the cream. Let the mixture come to a room temperature. (I chill mine outside for 20-30 minutes.)
Add mascarpone and whip with a hand mixer until smooth. If using cream cheese instead of mascarpone, whip the cheese until light and fluffy before adding cream and chocolate mixture and blending the ingredients together. Do not pre-whip mascarpone or it might separate from over-beating. Mix mascarpone and the cream/chocolate mixture together with a hand blender until combined, approximately 2 minutes. (The consistency of the truffle layer should be similar to thick sour cream.)
Line the sides of a springform pan with parchment paper. Put the sponge layer back in the springform pan.
Pour the truffle mixture on top of the cake in the springform pan and level it with an offset spatula. Chill in the refrigerator for at least for 2 hours or better overnight.
Run a knife along the sides of the cake to release it from the pan, then carefully unmold it and move to a cake stand. Decorate with sugar pearls and greenery.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350F/180C. Butter and dust with flour an 8"/20 cm round springform pan.
Beat room temperature eggs, vanilla and sugar in a medium bowl for about 3-5 minutes with an electric mixer until white, foamy and triple in volume.
Fold sifted flour in 3 additions with a spatula, be careful not to deflate the cake batter. If after the addition of the flour the volume goes down significantly, the cake will not rise properly.
Bake in the preheated oven for 15-17 minutes until a cake tester comes out clean. The baked sponge should have risen to at least double the height of the unbaked batter. Cool on a wire rack.
Bring the heavy cream in a saucepan to a boil. Pour the hot cream over chopped white chocolate and stir with a whisk until the chocolate in melted and completely incorporated into the cream. Let the mixture come to a room temperature. (I chill mine outside for 20-30 minutes.)
Add mascarpone and whip with a hand mixer until smooth. If using cream cheese instead of mascarpone, whip the cheese until light and fluffy before adding cream and chocolate mixture and blending the ingredients together. Do not pre-whip mascarpone or it might separate from over-beating. Mix mascarpone and the cream/chocolate mixture together with a hand blender until combined, approximately 2 minutes. (The consistency of the truffle layer should be similar to thick sour cream.)
Line the sides of a springform pan with parchment paper. Put the sponge layer back in the springform pan.
Pour the truffle mixture on top of the cake in the springform pan and level it with an offset spatula. Chill in the refrigerator for at least for 2 hours or better overnight.
Run a knife along the sides of the cake to release it from the pan, then carefully unmold it and move to a cake stand. Decorate with sugar pearls and greenery.