Amazing Homemade Ukrainian (Carpathian) Cake

My little country, Moldova, is located on the border with Ukraine. Therefore, we have long-standing and close friendships! What happens to them reflects on us, including rocket fragments that land on our land. Sooner or later, the war will end with the victory of good, and there will be peace throughout Europe!

Old recipes of Western Ukrainian (Carpathian) home baking inspired me to create this cake! It will decorate any holiday, and due to its taste, you will want to cook it again and again!

My master class is the author's ammonium cake recipe, the cakes of which can be stored for months. In addition to these baked goods, you get cookies as a bonus. This is an extraordinary recipe for a birthday cake. It allows you to experiment with filling and decor. Use various cream recipes to achieve an unrivalled and incredible taste!

The peculiarity of this cake is that the cakes for it can be baked in advance, stored, and used as the holidays come. The use of food ammonium as a baking powder (ammonium bicarbonate) allows you to get not only porous and airy pastries but also to store them for a long time without loss of quality. This cake recipe differs from others in that the cakes have an unforgettable taste. For many years, I have been baking this cake for the holidays for my loved ones. Each time, I add more and more nuances and innovations to the recipe. It is completely different from other recipes, and once you try it, you will not confuse it with anything. The result of the finished product exceeds expectations! In addition to everything from the rest of the dough, you will get incredible cookies for tea!

So let's get started! After all, the holidays are approaching, and there is no time to waste! The peculiarity of my recipe is that the ingredients are designed for three full-fledged products. That is, if you need one serving, the dough ingredients are divided into two or three parts. By weight, I got approximately 2.7 kg of dough for baking. With the same success, you can divide part of the dough for cakes and set aside the other part for cookies!

Dough Ingredients:

*(Ingredients are for 3 portion)

✿ 1 kg wheat flour

✿ 250g of sugar

✿ 8 eggs

✿ 400g of butter

✿ 3-4 tablespoons of sour cream or milk

✿ 2-3 teaspoons of cocoa powder

✿ 1.5-2 tablespoons of food ammonium

✿ 1/2 teaspoon of salt (2g)

* Cook's Tip: The amount of ingredients for one serving will be reduced threefold!

Cream Ingredients:

✿ 500g of sour cream (20-25 percent)

✿ 100-150g of sugar

✿ 1 sachet of vanilla or vanilla extract (1/2 tsp)

Additional cream:

✿ cream purchased, “Tiramisu”

*Cook's Tip: Whipped cream has a slightly sour, nutty taste and is very thick. It is suitable for cooking but has the same fat content as double (heavy) cream. It can be made by stirring cultured buttermilk into double (heavy) cream and refrigerating overnight.

Syrup for impregnation:

✿ 1/2 cup boiled water (100mL)

✿ 2-3 tablespoons of lemon syrup with sugar or lemon juice

✿ a few drops of cognac and/or rum essence (1/2 tsp)

✿ 1/2 cup sugar

Additional decor ingredients:

✿ 100-150 g walnuts (or almonds, pecan nuts)

✿ 50 g dark chocolate (half a package)

Equipment and tools:

✿ bowls

✿ cake pans

✿ parchment paper

✿ hand mixer

✿ grater

✿ flour sieve

✿ rolling pin

✿ a paring knife

✿ garlic press (optional)

✿ spatula (optional)

✿ a cake plate or board

The first step is to prepare all the ingredients, not forgetting that the butter must first be brought to room temperature. Also, thoroughly rinse and prepare all the necessary kitchen utensils for the preparation of this recipe.

Pour the required amount of sugar into a bowl, add the eggs, and beat them. This could be done by hand or with a mixer. Add butter to the finished whipped mass, grinding it into a fine fraction using a coarse grater. After that, combine everything.

Now sift the flour into a separate container using a sieve. Sifting not only removes small husk residues in the flour but also allows for more aeration of the dough.

Next, take a few tablespoons of sour cream or milk and add food ammonium (ammonium bicarbonate) to it. Ammonium can also be quenched with water or lemon juice. Do not forget to carefully seal the ammonium package with adhesive tape. Otherwise, next time you will be surprised that the bag will be empty. It will just evaporate!)

Add the beaten eggs gradually to the flour and mix it together. When the dough becomes firm, start kneading it with your hands. Next, divide it into two equal halves, and add cocoa powder to one of them. In the process, you can add more flour until the dough doesn't stick to your hands. To prevent the dough from becoming tough, do not knead it for a long time! A few minutes will be enough.

Now, the dough is individually wrapped in cling film and put in the refrigerator for about an hour. After that, take it out and divide the dough into two more parts. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough to a thickness of about 5 mm.

Baking sheets must be prepared in advance by greasing and sprinkling with flour. You can also use parchment paper for baking. But, even without paper, everything turns out great; the cakes do not stick to the surface. This little secret was given to me by my mother! Next, we throw the rolled-out dough on a baking sheet and cut out the excess side in place. Also, with an ordinary table knife, cut the dough into four rectangles.

This method fits more baking in the oven. You can also use round baking dishes if you prefer. For greater porosity, we put small punctures on pastries with a fork.

The oven must be preheated to a temperature of 180 °C (356 °F). Bake the cakes, bringing them to a ruddy state, for 10–15 minutes. Be careful not to burn it!

The rest of the dough, of different colors, is mixed and cut into small squares for cookies. Now, in several visits, we will bake all this in the oven.

During baking, due to the high temperature, all the ammonia from the dough will be evaporated. At the same time, due to the strong smell of ammonia, we should turn on the kitchen hood. After that, no traces of ammonium remain in the baked goods. A small amount of ammonium in the dough causes it to rise several times, giving the baked goods a porous structure in the form of bubbles and an unsurpassed taste.

In my recipe, the cakes are soaked in lemon syrup so that the cake becomes softer and more fragrant. To prepare the syrup, sugar is dissolved in water with the addition of lemon syrup and a few drops of cognac, as well as various essences for flavor.

All this is cooked in a saucepan over low heat, mixed, and brought to a boil. The cooled syrup is applied to the cakes and left to soak for some time.

Take cool sour cream from the fridge and beat it with a mixture until smooth, adding sugar and vanilla gradually. The cream can be refrigerated for several hours.

Meanwhile, prepare the second cream (which you purchased) according to the instructions on the package. This additional cream can be applied at your discretion. You can also make your own, unique cream for your cake.

You can begin layering the filling after the cake has been saturated with syrup. Walnuts are great for this! In order for them to be tastier and more aromatic, it is advisable to fry them in a pan or in the oven. After frying, they must be crushed (ground) or cut into small pieces. You can use a garlic press.

Spread cream over the bottom layer of the cake and sprinkle with nut crumbs on top. Sour cream is also added and alternated as our culinary product grows.

In total, I got 16 cakes, but I only used six for the cake. From the remaining shortcakes, you can collect two more cakes, five for each. At the end, as a decoration, I used dark, bitter chocolate.

The fantasy is not limited to this; for the next holiday, I will prepare some other cream, for example, custard. After decorating the cake, it must be left in the refrigerator for a few hours (2–6 hours) for impregnation. It will completely soak somewhere on the second day. Thus, it will fully reveal its unsurpassed aroma and taste!

Baked cookies according to this recipe are sprinkled with flour or powdered sugar, as you prefer. It seemed tastier with a sprinkle of ordinary bread flour, which was left after baking on a baking sheet.

Having prepared fragrant hibiscus tea flowers, it remains to enjoy the taste of not only this wonderful cake but also the upcoming holidays with your loved ones!

P.S. This is my first entry in the contest; if you really like something about the creation and the work I submitted, click the red “vote” (favorite) button on the top right. Thanks!