ARABICA – Sesame Coffee Cake

Sesame has become one of my favorite ingredients in desserts. It has a unique taste, and combines great with many other ingredients, such as coffee.

This coffee cake is made of sesame streusel crust, topped with vanilla and halva biscuit, coffee cream, sesame Chantilly cream and tiny chocolate truffles. It’s festive and if you like sesame I’m sure you’re going to love it.

Photo: Natalie Levin

ARABICA – Sesame Coffee Cake

Adapted from chef Guillaume Mabilleau recipe, with changes and adjustments.

Sesame streusel bottom:

50 grams cold butter (cut into cubes)
50 grams light brown sugar
Pinch of salt
50 grams all-purpose flour
60 grams sesame seeds

Vanilla and halva biscuit:

2 large eggs
100 grams sugar
Pinch of salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
20 grams sesame seeds praline paste or raw tahini paste
80 grams almond meal
20 grams all-purpose flour
40 grams melted butter

Coffee cream:

1 grams gelatin powder
5 ml. water
250 ml. milk
2 tbsp. instant coffee powder
3 egg yolks
60 grams sugar
Pinch of salt
25 grams cornstarch
125 grams butter

Sesame Chantilly cream:

2 grams gelatin
10 ml. water
250 ml. heavy cream
30 grams sesame seeds praline paste or 20 grams raw tahini paste + 10 grams maple
Pinch of salt
75 grams white chocolate (chopped)

Decorations:

tiny dark chocolate truffles
small pieces of sesame streusel
milk chocolate and cocoa powder “fence”

Sesame streusel bottom: in a food processor with a steel blade, put butter, sugar, salt and flour and blend until large clumps of dough form. Add sesame seeds and continue to blend until dough forms.
Roll out the dough between 2 sheets of baking paper to about 3-4 mm thick. Cool in the freezer for about 10 minutes.
Cut the streusel into 22 cm diameter circle and put in bottom of the pan.
Preheat oven to 170c degrees and bake for about 12-16 minutes or until golden brown. Cool slightly at room temperature.
Bake the remaining streusel until golden. Cool at room temperature and crack into small pieces (for decorating the cake).
Vanilla and halva biscuit: in a bowl of a mixer beat eggs, sugar, salt, vanilla and sesame praline paste (or tahini) until the mixture is light and airy.
Add almonds and flour and mix gently just until incorporated.
Add melted butter and mix just until blended.
Pour the batter over the baked streusel latey and bake for 12-18 minutes or until golden and set.
Cool completely.
Coffee cream: in a bowl put gelatin and water and set aside for 10 minutes at room temperature until the gelatin absorbs the liquid.
In a medium pan put milk and coffee bring to a simmer.
In a separate bowl, whisk egg yolks, sugar, salt and cornstarch until blended.
Pour about 1/3 of boiling milk over the yolks while whisking until blended.
Pour the mixture in the pan with remaining milk and whisk well.
Cook over medium heat while whisking constantly until smooth and thick cream forms.
Remove from heat and add the gelatin. Beat cream until it melts.
Add butter and blend using a stick blender to get a very smooth texture.
Cover and cool the cream in the refrigerator for about 3 hours or until it is completely set.
When the cream is cold, transfer it to a bowl and whisk until it becomes creamy again.
Transfer the cream into a pastry bag fitted with 2 cm piping tip and pipe spaced mounds of cream in top of the cake.
Sesame Chantilly cream: in a bowl put gelatin and water and set aside for 10 minutes at room temperature until the gelatin absorbs the liquid.
Put cream sesame praline paste and salt in a small pot and heat to a simmer
Add gelatin and chopped chocolate and blend using a stick blender until incorporated and very smooth.
Cover and cool in the refrigerator for about 3-4 hours or until it is completely set.
Transfer the cream to an electric mixer bowl and whip until you get a stable cream.
Transfer the cream into a pastry bag fitted with 2 cm piping tip and pipe mounds in between the coffee cream.
Extracted the cake from the pan and put chocolate decoration in the sides if desired.
Decorate with tiny truffles and small pieces of sesame streusel.

Sesame praline paste is a relatively new product of the Weiss France and rather difficult to achieve. So if you do not, you can use raw tahini mixed with a little maple for a slightly different result, but no less delicious.
Keep the sesame coffee cake in a closed container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.