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Russian hazelnut cake "Zhuravushka"
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Russian hazelnut cake "Zhuravushka"

Moist fluffy sponge cake with hazelnuts and delicate butter cream with nut flavor – simple and so delicious is the Russian hazelnut cake "Zhuravushka", which was very popular in the Soviet Union and has now become a rarity. According to this recipe, you can make it yourself. Covered with chocolate glaze, decorated with a sweet picture of a crane, hazelnuts and candied citrus peel, it is guaranteed to delight you and your loved ones both in taste and appearance.
Course Dessert
Cuisine Russian
Prep Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Cooling time 30 minutes
Servings 12

Equipment

  • Ø 24 cm baking pan

Ingredients

for the dough

  • 5 eggs
  • 150 g sugar
  • 25 g butter (melted and cooled to room temperature)
  • 140 g flour
  • 20 g cornstarch
  • 30 g hazelnuts (roasted and finely chopped or ground)
  • butter to grease the baking pan

for the cream

  • 250 g butter (room temperature)
  • 150 g sweetened condensed milk
  • yolks of 3 eggs
  • 50 g hazelnuts (roasted and finely chopped or ground)
  • 50 ml water
  • vanilla

for the chocolate glaze

  • 100 g milk chocolate
  • 60 g butter

for decorating

  • powdered sugar
  • whole and ground hazelnuts
  • candied orange peel and candied lemon peel

Instructions

Preparation of the dough

  • Beat the eggs and sugar until they form a fluffy white mixture.
  • Mix flour, cornstarch and finely chopped or ground hazelnuts and add to the egg-sugar mixture to make an airy, thick batter.
  • Gently stir melted and cooled butter into the batter.
  • Line the bottom of the baking pan with parchment paper and grease the sides with butter. Pour the batter into the baking pan and bake in a preheated oven at 180 °C top and bottom heat for about 25 minutes. Let the sponge cake cool down afterwards and then cut it lengthwise into two equally thick cake layers.

Preparation of the cream

  • Mix egg yolks with water in a small saucepan to a homogeneous mass.
  • Add sweetened condensed milk and mix again until homogeneous.
  • Place the mixture on the stove and heat over medium heat, stirring constantly, to about 80 °C until the mixture thickens slightly, do not boil it. Then let it cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally.
  • Beat soft butter for approx. 3 - 4 minutes to a creamy white mass, add the cooled egg yolk mass in portions as well as vanilla and beat to a homogeneous cream.
  • Stir finely chopped or ground hazelnuts into the cream.

Preparation of the chocolate glaze

  • Melt milk chocolate and butter together.

Preparation of the cake

  • Spread one of the two sponge cake layers generously with all the cream and place the second cake layer on top.
  • Cover the cake with the chocolate glaze and dust the edge of the cake with ground hazelnuts. Chill the cake for about 30 minutes until the chocolate glaze has dried.
  • Place a crane stencil on the cake, dust with powdered sugar and then very carefully remove the stencil. Decorate the cake with whole hazelnuts, candied orange peel and candied lemon peel.

Notes

  • Instead of hazelnuts go also other nuts for the dough and for the cream.
  • To make the sponge even fluffier, a small amount of flour was replaced by cornstarch. Alternatively, you can omit the cornstarch and replace it with the same amount of flour.
  • Under no circumstances add hot melted butter to the dough, but first cool it to room temperature.
  • Use a wooden skewer to test if the sponge is done baking.
  • You can make the sponge a day ahead and let it cool overnight.
  • Do not boil the egg yolk-condensed milk mixture for the cream, but heat it only to about 80 °C. It is important to stir the mixture constantly.
  • The crane image on the cake can be drawn with cocoa powder instead of powdered sugar.
  • The cake can also be decorated as desired.
  • Note the detailed tips and tricks for DIY Russian hazelnut cake "Zhuravushka" above in the post.