Meringue Coffee Cake with Chocolate Filling

Yummy, comforting, yeasty goodness for the March 2011 Daring Bakers’ Challenge
Source: Adapted from The Daring Bakers’ Challenge March 2011 hosted by Ria and Jamie

Taste: 5 (out of 5)

Difficulty: 4 (out of 5)

Ingredients
For the yeast coffee cake dough
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (910 cal)
- 1/4 cup sugar (195 cal)
- 1 tsp active dry yeast
- 1/4 cup 2% fat milk (30 cal)
- 2 tbsp water
- 1/4 cup Becel margarine at room temperature (430 cal)
- 1 large egg at room temperature (70 cal)
For the meringue
- 2 large egg whites at room temperature (30 cal)
- pinch of salt
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup sugar (195 cal)
For the filling
- 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (100 cal)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, not packed (275 cal)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted (860 cal)
For egg-wash
- 1 beaten egg-white with a tsp of sugar (30 cal)
Total: 1 round (10’’ coffee cake), 12 servings, 3125 cal, 260 cal / serving

Instructions
For the dough
1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the sugar, salt and yeast with 1/2 of the flour.
2. In a saucepan, combine the milk, water and margarine and heat over medium heat until warm and the margarine is just melted.
3. With an electric mixer on low speed, gradually add the warm liquid to the flour/yeast mixture, beating until well blended. Increase mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes. Add the egg and 1/2 of the remaining flour and beat for 2 more minutes.
4. Using a wooden spoon, stir in enough of the remaining flour to make dough that holds together. Turn out onto a floured surface (use any of the remaining flour) and knead the dough for 8 to 10 minutes until it is soft, smooth, sexy and elastic, keeping the work surface floured and adding extra flour as needed.
5. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, turning to coat all sides. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel and let rise until double in bulk, 45 – 60 minutes. The rising time will depend on the type of yeast you use.
For the filling
6. Melt the butter and stir in the cocoa powder and the sugar until uniform with no lumps. Set aside.
For the meringue
7. Once the dough has doubled, in a clean mixing bowl – ideally a plastic or metal bowl so the egg whites adhere to the side (they slip on glass) and you don’t end up with liquid remaining in the bottom – beat the egg whites with the salt, first on low speed for 30 seconds, then increase to high and continue beating until foamy and opaque. Add the vanilla then start adding the sugar, a tablespoon at a time as you beat, until very stiff, glossy peaks form.
For the assembly
8. Line a baking/cookie sheet with parchment paper.
9. Punch down the dough. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a 20 x 10-inch (about 51 x 25 ½ cm) rectangle. Spread the filling and then the meringue over the rectangle up to about 1/2-inch (3/4 cm) from the edges.
10. Now, roll up the dough jellyroll style, from the long side. Pinch the seam closed to seal. Very carefully transfer the filled log to the lined cookie sheet, seam side down. Bring the ends of the log around and seal the ends together, forming a ring, tucking one end into the other and pinching to seal.
11. Using kitchen scissors or a sharp knife (although scissors are easier), make cuts along the outside edge at 1-inch (2 ½ cm) intervals. Make them as shallow or as deep as desired but don’t be afraid to cut deep into the ring.
12. Cover the coffee cake with plastic wrap and allow to rise again for 45 to 60 minutes.
13. Preheat the oven to 350F / 180C.
14. Brush the top of the coffee cakes with the egg wash. Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes until risen and golden brown. The dough should sound hollow when tapped.
15. Remove from the oven and slide the parchment paper off the cookie sheet onto the table. Very gently loosen the coffee cakes from the paper with a large spatula and carefully slide the cake off onto cooling racks. Allow to cool.
16. Just before serving, dust the top of the coffee cakes with confectioner’s sugar and cocoa powder. These are best eaten fresh, the same day or the next day.

Afterthoughts
- First of all, thanks so much to Jamie and Ria for the yummy challenge :-)
- The cake turned out very tasty, a little too big for me, since I cook for only two. So next time I will follow the example of kristy_baker and make two 6-inch cakes with different fillings.
- My dough only rose in the oven, this did not impact the taste, but I had been somewhat concerned until I tasted the cake. So next time I will “activate” the yeast, just like when making bread: I will put the yeast in lukewarm milk with a little bit of sugar and let it rest for 5 minutes, until it becomes bubbly. Then I’ll add the milk with the activated yeast to the flour together with the other liquid ingredients.
- My filling was more liquid than the ones on the Daring Baker’s site, and some of it poured out of the cuts. Based on other posts, it happened to several other bakers. Fortunately there was the parchment paper. Maybe I should use drier filling or make smaller cuts and only on the very top of the cake.

Blog-checking lines: The March 2011 Daring Baker’s Challenge was hosted by Ria of Ria’s Collection and Jamie of Life’s a Feast. Ria and Jamie challenged The Daring Bakers to bake a yeasted Meringue Coffee Cake.