Strawberry Jam Torte

Instructions

DOUGH:

Preheat oven to 350F.

Mix all ingredients together (by hand is easiest, but a mixer can be used).

Divide dough into 6 portions.

Spread each layer of dough thinly, patting it down with fingers, on bottom of a 10" round cake pan (the spring-form type with removable sides) that has been buttered and floured. The layers will be exceptionally thin. (Patting the dough down evenly takes a lot of time! Don’t try to save effort by making fewer layers, as they will turn out too thick and the filling will not soak into them properly so the cake will be too hard and dry.)

Bake (two or three pans at a time) until a deep gold color (perhaps only 10 minutes).

Remove immediately and carefully from pans, while still warm. (Layers fall apart very easily, even when warm. If the layer is allowed to cool, it becomes less flexible and is guaranteed to fall into pieces. But you can still eat the pieces on their own as if they were melt-in-your-mouth shortbread cookies!) Let cool slightly.

FILLING/ICING:

Add jam to whipped egg whites and mix thoroughly. Add sugar if desired and mix well. (Usually, the jam is sweet enough that sugar is not necessary. Also, for some reason the filling seems to taste sweeter over time, so if it seems just right at the start, it will be too sweet after a couple of days.) The taste will be delicate, not intense.

ASSEMBLY:

Stack cake layers, spreading filling between each cake layer; also use filling to frost top and sides.

Leave cake at room temperature for a few hours so filling can soak into the layers. (In very hot and humid weather, one hour is enough.) Then refrigerate. Wait for a couple of days before serving. Serve from fridge. (If the top frosting soaks in too much after a few days and it no longer looks as appealing, just whip up another egg white and mix in 1 tablespoon jam, and re-frost top).

Author's Comments

This is very nice and sweet, not as heavy as some tortes. I got this recipe from my mother, Joanna Werhanowska Panczak, who was originally from Lviw in Western Ukraine. It is easy to make (except for some effort to pat down the dough layers thinly before baking). It’s great for making ahead, because in fact the torte is not really good until a day or two after it is made. It keeps well, you can serve it 3 or 4 days later (or even a week) without any loss of taste

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