Festive holiday cake (inspired by potratna potica)
Festive holiday cake combines the divine taste of »potratna potica«, the juiciness of rich fillings, and a slightly simpler preparation than the classic »potratna potica«. Plus, it look very festive on the holiday table! »Potratna potica« is a special type of potica, characterized by a rich filling and succulent taste. It is a popular traditional dish in some Slovenian kitchens, especially during festive periods.
INGREDIENTS
For a baking dish approximately 24 x 30 cm)
Dough (light for the top and bottom)
- 3 eggs
- 70 g Live & Love erythritol with stevia
- 80 g melted butter
- 150 g full-fat mascarpone cheese
- 1 tablespoon cream cheese
- 180 g Live & Love defatted almond flour
- 50 g Live & Love BIO defatted finely ground coconut flour
- 1 packet baking powder
- 20 g ground psyllium husk
Chocolate Sponge:
- 4 eggs
- 90 g melted dark chocolate
- 40 g Live & Love BIO defatted finely ground coconut flour
- 3 tablespoons Live & Love erythritol with stevia
- 1 leveled teaspoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon rum
- 2 tablespoons liquid cream (or milk)
Walnut Filling:
- 250 g ground walnuts
- 70 g Live & Love erythritol with stevia
- 120 ml cream
- 2-3 tablespoons rum
- contents of a vanilla pod or natural vanilla flavor
- 2 egg whites
- ½ teaspoon Live & Love BIO cocoa powder
Cottage Cheese Filling:
- 500 g cottage cheese
- 60-70 g Live & Love erythritol with stevia (sweeten to taste)
- Vanilla flavor or contents of ½ vanilla pod
- 1 egg + 2 egg yolks (from the walnut filling)
Others:
- Powdered erythritol with stevia for sprinkling
- A few tablespoons of almond flour for sprinkling the dough while rolling
- 1 egg yolk + tablespoon BIO Ghee butter for brushing
METHOD
Preparation Process for Light Dough:
Whisk the eggs until fluffy (mix for a few minutes), gradually adding the sweetener. When the mixture becomes frothy and slightly increases in volume, add the melted butter and mix well. Then add mascarpone and cream cheese. Finally, fold in the mixture of dry ingredients and mix well. I use dough hooks on the mixer for this part. Transfer the dough to a plate or bowl and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or preferably overnight. The dough is extremely soft, but once it cools well and the ingredients combine, it becomes compact.
Preparation Process for Chocolate Sponge:
Start by melting the dark chocolate. Separate the egg yolks and whites, then beat the egg whites into soft peaks. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks with erythritol with stevia until creamy. Add the melted dark chocolate, defatted coconut flour, baking powder, vanilla, and rum if desired to the egg yolk mixture. Stir in the cream. Then fold in the beaten egg whites. Spread the sponge batter thinly in a baking dish lined with parchment paper. Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for approximately 10-12 minutes.
Preparation Process for Walnut Filling:
Prepare the walnut filling by pouring ground walnuts into a pan and slowly toasting them at low temperature until fragrant. Be careful not to burn them! In a separate bowl, mix cream, cocoa, rum, and the contents of a vanilla pod. When the walnuts are gently toasted, pour them into the cream mixture (with rum, cocoa, and vanilla). Mix everything well and set aside. Beat 2 egg whites into stiff peaks (gradually adding sweetener during mixing) and gently fold them into the filling.
For the cottage cheese filling, mix all the ingredients.
Layering Process:
Once the dough has rested long enough and is well chilled (this is crucial—if you’re in a hurry, you can put it in the freezer for about 30 minutes), prepare a surface for rolling. Divide the dough into two parts and place one part on a sheet of parchment paper generously sprinkled with almond flour. Put the other part of the dough back in the refrigerator. Place another sheet of parchment paper on top of the dough and gently roll it out with a rolling pin to about 5-8 mm thickness. Transfer it, along with the parchment paper, to a baking sheet in which you’ll bake the pastry.
Next, layer the walnut filling, place the chocolate sponge on top of the walnut filling (if it’s too dry, you can moisten it with a mixture of cream-water-rum), and then add the cottage cheese filling on top of the chocolate sponge.
Now, let’s tackle the second half of the dough. Sprinkle parchment paper and the dough with almond flour, roll it out to the same thickness as the first part of the dough.
Now follows an important step that you must not skip; otherwise, transferring the dough to the baking sheet will be more challenging: gently peel off the top sheet of parchment paper from the dough and sprinkle the entire surface of the dough with almond flour. Then place a NEW sheet of parchment paper on the dough (or flip the one you peeled off so that the clean part of the sheet is on the side of the dough), and turn the dough with both parchment papers around so that the top side is now the side that was previously at the bottom, and there is now a new sheet of parchment paper at the bottom. Gently peel off the top sheet of parchment paper, and the dough is ready for transfer to the baking sheet. Together with the parchment paper, transfer it onto the cottage cheese filling, so the dough is at the bottom, and the paper is on top. Then gently peel off the paper. You can also transfer it with a rolling pin.
Bake at 180 degrees Celsius for 35-40 minutes. 20 minutes before the end, brush with a mixture of egg yolk and melted BIO Ghee butter.
Wishing you a pleasant baking experience!
MY TIPS
- Baked slices can also be frozen.
- In the case of substituting Erythritol with Stevia with regular Erythritol, the amount of sweetener must be adjusted accordingly or increased. Erythritol with Stevia is about 25% sweeter than regular Erythritol. Erythritol with Stevia from the Live & Love brand does not have a “cool” aftertaste, which is not excluded with regular Erythritol from other brands.








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