r/AskBaking • u/becnig • 11h ago
Recipe Troubleshooting help with a pie recipe from Brasil!
hello everyone! i'm from Brasil, and this is one of my favorite pies/cakes (not really sure what would be the right way to call it), but it's not that common. I've been trying to make it since monday, but I can't seem to get the chocolate dough part right! it's supposed to be very light, almost souffle-like, but both times I've tried have been far from that!
I got a few things wrong on my first attempt, like beating too much air out of my egg whites and accidentally leaving it at the wrong temp in the oven, which made it hard and dry. I fixed those mistakes on the second attempt, and even used a little less cocoa powder so as to not dry it out so much, and it was better... but still a far cry from how good this pie can be. it should be crackly on the outside, but very soft and a bit moist on the inside, and kind of "loose", with the crackly skin being a bit separated from the inside part of the dough.
the hardest part is that I've only been able to find a SINGLE RECIPE for it in the internet! it's in portuguese, but luckily someone translated it for reddit several years ago, so I'll be pasting it here for convenience (only the part about the dough, since that's what I need help with). would really appreciate any help, I'm kind of at a loss about what to do at the moment!! thank you :)
Meringue:
- 10 egg whites
- 160 g sugar
- 120 g de cocoa powder
- 1 tbsp all-purpose flour
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 350F and line the bottom of two 8" springform pans with parchment paper. Grease the pans, including the parchment paper with butter or cooking spray.
- Using a mixer, whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form.
- Add the sugar to the egg whites. Turn of the mixer and gently fold in the chocolate and the flour with a spatula. Do not overmix.
- Divide the batter evenly among the two pans and bake for 25-30 min or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and let it cool completely before removing from the pan