Neapolitan Petits-Fours

Version Française Ici

These little sweets are just perfect for a nice presentation on special occasions. It is preferable to make them at least 2 days ahead of time but I personally prefer them made at least a week ahead since they taste even better after they sit for a while.

For Nissa’s engagement party, I tried icing them in white quick pour icing but that was not quite successful. The colors of the cake bled through and their aspect wasn’t quite as satisfying as with the traditional chocolate icing. Plus they were a bit too sweet. The dark chocolate icing actually adds a delicious new dimension to their taste which the white icing didn’t.

12 ounces almond paste
2 sticks unsalted butter, slightly firm
1 cup sugar
4 large eggs, separated
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned in and leveled
Green food color
Red food color
Yellow food color
2/3 cup raspberry jam
1 cup apricot jam or apple jelly
10 ounces dark chocolate, coarsely chopped

Pre-heat oven to 350°F (180°C). Lightly butter the bottom and sides of three 12 1/4 x 8 1/4 baking pans. Line them buttered baking parchment. If you don’t have 3 baking pans this size, use one and bake each layer of the cake separately, washing, drying and preparing the pan again for each new layer to bake. Or alternatively use disposable aluminum pans.

Shred the almond paste on the biggest holes of a grater and place it in the bowl of an electric mixer (or use a hand mixer) and cream it with the butter and sugar until the mixture has lightened in color. Incorporate the extract and mix well to combine.

Add flour in 3 times blending well after each addition until well incorporated. Beat egg whites until firm. Add third of the egg whites to the batter and mix well. Fold in the rest of the egg whites delicately in 2 more additions.
Divide the batter in 3 different bowls and color each a different color. Cook all the 3 layers until tops are firm to the touch and slightly browned, about 10 minutes. Wait until cooled before un-molding as the hot biscuits are very fragile and you don’t want to break them.

Have ready a large sheet of plastic wrap placed on a cookie sheet. Invert the green layer onto the plastic, top side down. Using a small offset spatula, spread the surface evenly with a thin layer raspberry jam. Place the yellow layer, again top side down, on top of the raspberry jam. Align the two layers and press them together. Spread 2 tablespoons of the raspberry jam over the plain layer, again using a small offset spatula. Then place the pink layer, top side up, on top of the raspberry jam. Be sure that the three layers are evenly aligned, then press them together again.

Wrap the layered stack tightly with plastic, sealing the ends securely, and place it on a clean cookie sheet. Place another cookie sheet on top of the wrapped stack and weight it with two or three heavy books to compress the layers. Let the stack rest at room temperature for at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours.

Unwrap the stack and set it on a cutting board. Using a large serrated knife, trim 1/4 inch from all sides. Then cut the stack into cubes, 1 to 1.5 inches. Put the cubes on a wire rack in a large baking sheet.

To make the apricot glaze place the apricot preserves and 2 tablespoons water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and remove from heat. Brush a thin layer of the warm glaze on the top and sides of each strip to seal the surface. Let stand for 1/2 hour.

Meanwhile melt the chocolate to liquefy it, very gently so it doesn’t become an un-manageable mass. Drizzle the cubes to cover them in melted chocolate and allow to harden several hours.

I tried to stick tooth-picks in the cubes, dip them in the apple jelly, the melted chocolate and then slide the tooth-pick in holes of my wire rack allowing the cubes to rest on it without me having to touch them the way I’ve seen it done in an artisan chocolate shop but it didn’t work well. The cubes or cake didn’t stay on the tooth-picks when dipped in the jam or chocolate and it was a mess. Oh well, I tried…