Step 1

Separate the egg whites from the egg yolks. Cover the bowl with egg yolks with plastic film and refrigerate. Keep the whites at room temperature (uncovered) for 2 hours. Then, warm the mixer bowl by rinsing it with hot water and dry it. Add the egg whites to the bowl and warm them to 75-76°F (23-24°C), checking with a cooking or infrared thermometer.

Step 2

Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Grind the roasted hazelnuts into coarse crumbs in short pulses using a food processor. Alternatively, you can utilize a knife to get chopped hazelnuts. Mix the prepared nuts, 1 1/8 cup (225 g) of sugar (#1), and sifted all-purpose flour.

Step 3

Place the egg whites in the metal bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat at a low speed, gradually increasing it to medium. With the first small bubbles, start adding sugar.

Step 4

Add the remaining sugar #2 (1/4 cup or 50 g) in two additions, each time whisking well for 30 seconds. Add the vanilla sugar and continue whisking at medium or speed for 4-5 minutes. The meringue will become glossy with stiff peaks and hold its shape on the beaters with a stable bird's beak.

Step 5

Pour dry ingredients into the whisked egg whites in 3 additions and gently mix with a rubber spatula from the bottom to top. Try to work in one direction: from the center of the bowl to the sides, turning the bowl clockwise with another hand. Don't overmix: mix to combine!

Step 6

Place two cake rings on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper: one 7-inch (18 cm), the other 8-inch (20 cm) in diameter. Don't grease the sides of the rings. Divide the meringue mixture between two cake molds, ensuring the meringue height is the same. Smooth the surface of the meringue with a spatula. Use two clean toothpicks to check the height of the meringue in both rings.

Step 7

Bake in the preheated oven for about 2 hours until the meringue layers are slightly browned. Don't open the oven door for the first 90 minutes.

Step 8

Remove the cakes from the oven and allow them to cool still in the cake rings. Leave them uncovered at room temperature for 12-24 hours (still in the cake rings!)

Step 9

, use a knife to remove the cake layers and carefully peel the parchment paper. Place the smaller cake disk on top of the larger cake disc and cut to one size. You will have two cake discs with a diameter of 7 inches (18 cm) and a thickness of 1.2 inches (3 cm). Collect the scraps and crush them into crumbs by hand.

Step 10

pour milk into a heavy-bottomed medium saucepan and add sugar. Bring it almost to a boil.

Step 11

Take the remaining yolks out of the refrigerator and mix them with a hand whisk. If the surface of the yolks has dried out, pass them through a fine-mesh sieve. Pour the hot milk syrup over the egg yolks in a thin stream, stirring constantly to prevent the yolks from curdling.

Step 12

Bring the mixture back into the saucepan and place on medium heat. Cook until thickens, constantly stirring vigorously. You should get the cooked mixture with the consistency of thin condensed milk.

Step 13

Remove it from the heat and transfer it to a shallow enough plate to stop cooking the cream. Cover the cream with plastic wrap in contact and leave to cool at room temperature.

Step 14

Beat softened butter with vanilla sugar until whitish. Add the custard that has cooled to room temperature to the butter (one tablespoon at a time). Make sure that the butter and custard base are at the same temperature. Otherwise, the cream risks stratifying.

Step 15

divide the cream into two equal parts. Add cognac to one part of the cream and whisk again with a mixer. Take about 3 tablespoons of the cream for the decoration. Sift cocoa powder over another part of the cream and mix with an electric mixer.

Step 16

Apply about a teaspoon of the white cream to a cake board or a serving plate so the cake does not slip. Place the first cake layer with the smooth side down (the bottom of the cake on the cake board). the white cream on the surface of the cake. Don't use the cream left for garnish!

Step 17

Put the top layer with a smooth side up and press slightly. If using a cake ring, bring the cake to the refrigerator to stabilize the cream for about 30 minutes. Otherwise, proceed. Cover the top of the cake with chocolate cream. Apply a fairly thin layer of the cream to the sides of the cake and sprinkle with the prepared crumbs.

Step 18

transfer the chocolate cream to a piping bag with Wilton open star tip MPipe the cream around the edge of the cake. Transfer the white cream to a pastry bag with the tip M1.

Step 19

Pipe two to three cream swirls or other floral designs with chocolate or white cream. Sprinkle half the cake with crumbs. Refrigerate the cake for at least 4-6 hours, preferably overnight.