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Markiza Cake – Торт “Маркиза”

Markiza Cake is a popular Russian Cake that consists of thin layers of shortbread, meringue, walnuts and Dulce de Leche Buttercream. It’s one of the most well loved cakes in my family and they request it all the time! Try it and you’ll see why!

Markiza cake slice on a plate topped with a chocolate ganache and whipped cream. The most popular and most often requested cake in our family. Markiza cake consists of thin shortbread cake layers, topped with meringue & walnuts, then layered with dulce de leche filling.

There’s not been a celebration where this Markiza Cake was not requested. It is truly delicious. With my love for all things dulce de leche & nuts I might be slightly biased, but I am thinking that may be not that much, since everyone (literally) who has ever tried it always made comments on how awesome it is. The only complaint that one might have is that it might be too sweet for some. But nothing a sugar free cup of tea of coffee can’t fix 🙂

What are the variations of this Russian Cake Markiza? 

There are two major things that can be changed in this cake to make it different. One is, the nuts. You can switch the nuts hazelnuts or pecans and the flavor will change accordingly. Also, you can substitute the dulce de leche for regular sweetened condensed milk like I did in this Marquise Cake.

I say if you’re feeling brave one of these days and have several hours of time to kill, go ahead and try it. Not only will you have a delicious cake, but then you get the bragging rights too!

A slice of Markiza cake on a plate with a fork.

 

For step by step picture instructions of this cake see this Marquise Cake Recipe. That recipe is made the same exact way as this one, only it uses sweetened condensed milk in the cream instead of dulce de leche. The Marquise cake is also a scaled-down version of this cake.

Here are some more Cakes to try:

  • Marble Cake – Chocolate and vanilla cake cubes dipped in chocolate, cherries and topped with a sour cream frosting.
  • Russian Royal Cake – Layered of chocolate cake with dulce de leche cream, cherries, and walnuts.
  • Russian Napoleon Cake – Crispy layers of puff pastry, sandwiched together with creamy and buttery custard.

Markiza Cake - Торт "Маркиза"

5 from 7 votes

Markiza Cake is a popular Russian Cake that consists of thin
layers of shortbread, meringue, walnuts and Dulce de Leche Buttercream.

Author: Marina | Let the Baking Begin
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Russian
Keyword: markiza cake
Calories: 514 kcal
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes
Servings: 24 Servings

Ingredients

For Cake Layers

  • 7 egg yolks
  • 4 tbsp sour cream
  • 1 tsp baking soda + 1Tbsp vinegar
  • 12 oz unsalted butter or Golden Soft Margarine room temperature
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour (add 1/2 cup more if needed)

Meringue

Frosting

  • 2 cans of dulce de leche/condensed milk (1 can = 14 oz)
  • 16 oz unsalted butter room temperature (leave at room temp for 3 hours)
  • 2 Tbsp cocoa powder
  • 2 Tbsp instant coffee + 2 Tbsp hot water to dissolve

Dark Chocolate Glaze

  • 1 tsp gelatin a little less than 1 teaspoon
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream (35% fat content)
  • 5 tbsp granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup water 1/4 cup = 50g
  • 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Also

  • 16 oz Cool whip or heavy whipping cream

Instructions

  1. If starting with sweetened condensed milk and not dulce de leche, make your own dulce de leche by removing labels from the cans, placing them in the pot, covering with water by about 3 inches and simmering for 2 hours over low heat. Then, remove from water and allow to cool completely.

Make the dough

  1. To a bowl of a mixer add 7 egg yolks, 4 tbsp sour cream and quickly mix with the paddle attachment until combined. Meanwhile, mix 1 tsp baking soda and 1 tbsp white vinegar and stir until the foam subsides, then add to the egg yolks and sour cream and mix for about 30 seconds on low-medium speed.

  2. Add 350 g of room temperature butter or margarine and beat for another 30 seconds to combine.

  3. Next, add 3 cups of flour and stir to bring together into a dough. Form 10 balls. Wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for 40 minutes.

    If making a round 10-inch cake, divide the dough into 10 balls.

    If making a rectangle 12"x18 inch cake, divide into 4.

Make the frosting

  1. Combine hot water with instant coffee, stir to dissolve coffee. Set aside and allow to cool.

  2. Whip room temperature butter until fluffy and pale in color, about 5 minutes, scraping down the bottom of the bowl several times throughout.

  3. Add room temperature condensed milk, by pouring the condensed milk down the side of the bowl while the mixer is running. Do not over whip or the cream will separate.

  4. Add the dissolved coffee and carefully fold to incorporate.

  5. Reserve 1 cup of frosting for decorating.
  6. Transfer the rest of the frosting to a ziplock or pastry bag.Place in the fridge until ready to use.

Make the meringue {right before ready to roll out the dough}

  1. Place egg whites into a clean (no traces of fat, or it will not whip up) bowl and whip until frothy, about 30 seconds. While continuing to whip, add sugar in a continuous stream. Continue whipping for about 15-20 minutes until the meringue is glossy in color and stiff.

Roll and Bake Cake layers

  1. Preheat oven to 380F.
  2. Work with 1 dough ball at a time. Place a damp towel on your working surface and top it with a round 10 inch round upside-down baking pan or a 12"x18" rectangle jelly roll baking pan. Now roll the dough directly onto the back of the upside-down baking pan.

    For a rectangle cake, alternatively, you can lightly mist your working surface with water, then press a piece of an aluminum foil slightly longer than the base of the baking sheet (about 12"x20"). The water will help the foil to adhere and not move as you roll the cake layer out. Now place one dough ball and roll it out to about 12x18 inches. The dough will be super thin and almost transparent.

  3. Spread about 1/10th of meringue on top of the rolled out dough or 1/4th of the total amount if making a rectangle cake.

    Sprinkle with 1/10th or 1/4th of the walnuts respectively.

    If you rolled the cake layers directly on foil, slide a baking sheet underneath and transfer to the oven. Otherwise just transfer the cake to the oven.

  4. Bake for 6 minutes at 380F, then lower the temperature to 220F and bake another 15-16 minutes (the cake underneath the meringue should stay golden in color, not burnt). Make 9 or 3 more cake layers in this manner, respectively.

  5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Be very careful with the cake layers as they are extremely fragile.

Assemble

  1. Snip off the end of the ziplock bag with the frosting and pipe a dollop on the serving platter.
  2. Slide a flat cookie sheet under 1 of the cake layers and transfer it to on top of the dollop of frosting. Press lightly to adhere.

  3. In a zig-zag pattern spread 1/10th or 1/4th of the frosting on top of the cake, leaving the zig-zag lines about 1/2 inch apart. Add the second layer of cake and pipe the cream in a zig zag pattern going in the opposite direction to the first. Continue layering the cake and alternating the direction of the zig zags. Invert the top layer meringue side down.

    If making a rectangle cake, split the cake down the middle into two halves and stack them to give you an 8 layer cake.

  4. Trim the sides of the cake with a serrated knife to even them out. If you leave the cake in the fridge for a couple of hours being trimming, it will be a lot easier. If pressed for time, forgo the refrigeration time.

  5. Use the reserved frosting to spread around the sides of the cake
  6. Press chopped nuts around the cake, leaving the top layer as is.

Alternative decorating method (chose one of the two methods below)

Decorate with Simple Ganache

  1. Combine 3/4 cup hot cream, with 2 tablespoons corn syrup & 3/4 cups chopped dark chocolate. Let sit for 2 minutes. Stir to make a smooth ganache.

  2. When frosting the cake, place the last layer bottom side up, meringue side down.

  3. Whip 1.5 cups whip cream with 2-3 tablespoons sugar until stiff peaks. Or use 3 cups of Cool whip instead.

  4. Cover the cake entirely in the prepared whipped cream or cool whip. Pour the prepared chocolate ganache over the cake and spread around the top, carefully coming close to the edges and allowing it drizzle down.

Make the High Gloss Mirror Glaze type Ganache

  1. Mix gelatin with water and let stand for 5 minutes, allowing the gelatin to bloom.
  2. Combine the cream, sugar and cocoa in a saucepan and let come to a boil over medium heat. Cook for 3 minutes past the boiling point, mixing with the spoon to prevent scorching.
  3. Take off the heat, mix in the gelatin and mix thoroughly.
  4. Let cool, until the glaze covers the back of the spoon. Pour over the cake top right away, evening it out with a spatula.
  5. Store in the refrigerator until ready to eat.
Nutrition Facts
Markiza Cake - Торт "Маркиза"
Amount Per Serving
Calories 514 Calories from Fat 405
% Daily Value*
Fat 45g69%
Saturated Fat 20g125%
Cholesterol 129mg43%
Sodium 365mg16%
Potassium 119mg3%
Carbohydrates 23g8%
Sugar 21g23%
Protein 4g8%
Vitamin A 1420IU28%
Vitamin C 0.2mg0%
Calcium 57mg6%
Iron 0.5mg3%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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Marina | Let the Baking Begin

Welcome to Let the Baking Begin! I'm Marina and my love and passion for eating only the most delicious foods drive me to share that love here on Let the Baking Begin (since 2009). With over 20 years of experience in the kitchen, you know the recipes are tested and retested until perfect. I'm so happy to have you here. Enjoy! Read more...

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  • Julia

    Just made this delicious cake again (doubled the recipe) and trying out with dulche de leche buttercream frosting this time. Followed the recipe and everything turned out perfectly . It’s a cake that’s totally worth to make. Took me 3 hours total from start to finish 12×18 and 7 layers.

    Marina May God Bless You and Your family. Thank you for sharing such wonderful recipes!

    · Reply
  • Mariane Dimitri

    Marina,
    This is a great cake , I tried it before and was a great hit, is it possible to make this cake ahead of time and freeze?
    Thank you

    · Reply
  • Julie

    Hello Marina!! Your site is one of the greatest finds!!! I mean WOW! Your cake recipes don’t compare to none of the slavik girls out there!! I’m a lover!!
    One question. I was baking this cake tonight. In the maringue it indicates that I needed nuts and in frosting indicated I needed cocoa but then through out directions of making it and assembling it.. It didn’t mention about it at all… To my shame but Yeh for first timers to make this kind of “glory” little things like that matter sooo much…
    So where does cocoa go?
    And when do I add walnuts to the cake?
    Thank you Marina!!

    · Reply
    • Hi Julie,
      So glad to have you on my site, welcome! Thank you so much for your kind comment!

      I have emailed you back with the response awhile ago, so I hope that clarifies your questions about the cake.

      · Reply
  • Irina

    What size do I roll out the layers? Can I make them 10’?

    · Reply
    • Hi Irina,
      I have updated the recipe card to be more specific in the instructions. But in short, yes this recipe makes a 10 inch round cake.

      Also, note that this recipe makes a pretty large cake. For a scaled down version of this cake with step by step photos check out the Marquise cake. That cake is the same thing as this one but uses sweetened condensed milk instead of dulce de leche. If making it off the instructions of the Marquise cake, I would make 6 cake layers.

      · Reply
      • Irina

        Thanks for your quick response! I actually need a big cake. Also, my concern is that the meringue will melt while we wait for all the layers to cook. Have you had this problem before. It starts to loose its form if it stands in room temp for a while.

        Have you ever baked a few layers at the same time ?

        · Reply
  • Olya

    Hi, just want to say thanks for the awesome recipes. I have made this cake once before (the very large size). Everyone loved it. I am now going to use this recipe. I definitely appreciate the different size options.

    · Reply
    • Thank you so much Olya! I appreciate your comment and the star rating!

      · Reply
      • Olya

        This cake has been such a hit at my family and church events. Its the most requested cake from my collection of recipes. I will add that after the 4th or 5th time making it, it gets easier lol

        · Reply
  • Рима

    Спасибо за рецепт!
    Торт очень вкусный и ооочень сытный!

    · Reply
  • Anonymous

    This cake takes soooo long to make!! Took me almost 8 hrs! And it’s kinda hard to make this cake withought any pictures:/
    Haven’t tried it yet, I hope it was worth the time

    · Reply
    • I am not surprised, it takes several hour for me to make it and I have done this cake dozens of times! Once you get the hang of it, it’s faster, but still it’s a pretty laborious process.

      I do wish you checked one of the latest posts on the blog, because it has the updated post of Markiza cake with step by step pictures, which probably would have been helpful. That cake uses regular uncooked condensed milk cream, but other than that it is pretty much the same. Here’s the link if you want to see it – https://letthebakingbegin.com/2016/12/markiza-cake-marquise-cake/

      I hope you enjoy the cake once you try it! Thanks for your comment!

      · Reply
  • Angela

    My husband and I love this cake ! It’s definitely really sweet but I have tried making it without cooking the condensed milk and personally I think it tastes less sweeter which i like better but my husband on the other hand likes it cooked better.

    · Reply
  • Anna

    Such a beautiful cake! I’d love to make it, but I’m a little scared it sounds so complicated, I would really appreciate if you would add some step by step pictures as you have with your other recipes. It would help so much!

    · Reply
    • Hi Anna,
      Yes, one day when I make it I’ll have to take pictures and add them in.
      Break the cake making process into parts and don’t do it all at once, so it doesn’t feel so overwhelming 🙂

      · Reply
  • Lena

    I wish you had this cake as a video tutorial. It would answer more questions visually.

    · Reply
  • Natasha

    Hi. I am just now making the cake. My meringue is crispy on top of the cooked dough, but soft on the inside. Am i doing something wrong? I have tried keeping it in the oven longer, but one of the layers has been in the oven for over 30 min and still the same.

    · Reply
    • That usually mean that the meringue is slightly under whipped. But sometimes it is still soft when you take it out but as soon as it cools it crisps up. I hope this helps.

      · Reply
      • Natasha

        Thanx, Marina. It actually all worked out. The cake turned out delicious!!! It’s the recipe I’ve been looking for a while. Light, airy crispy goodness. Worth the time.

        · Reply
  • Grant S

    I’m confused..this recipe says cook time 1 hour 30. The recipe says cook layers 6 minutes, then 15 mins at reduced temp……..repeat 9 times! Thanks.

    · Reply
  • Natasha

    Мариночка,
    Какая красота!!!
    Только у меня есть вопрос – можно ли испечь коржи за несколько дней и хранить их либо в холодильнике или без, а потом за ночь до мероприятия перемазать кремом? Или так нельзя????
    Заранее спасибо!!!

    · Reply
    • Здраствуйте Наташа, спасибо большое 🙂
      Можно и за пару дней наперед испеч коржи и держать их завернутыми в пленку в холодильнике. Но лучше всего просто перемазать коржи день перед употреблением и держать торт в холодильнике до нужного времени 🙂

      · Reply
  • Natalie

    Привет, просто хотела узнать у тебя этот рецепт только на английском языке или на русском тоже есть?

    · Reply
  • Anna

    Where does the cocoa powder go?

    · Reply
    • Hi Anna,
      Into the frosting. To be honest, I personally do not add the cocoa to the frosting, but some people like the frosting to be more chocolate flavored so they add it to the frosting.

      · Reply
  • Oksana

    Could I substitute butter for the margarine in the batter? Thank you!

    · Reply
    • Yes you can. Margarine yields a more tender cake, but butter can definitely be used in place of margarine.

      · Reply
  • Natasha

    Hi, Marina! Can you tell me appx height of this cake? I’m trying to figure out my daughter’s bday cake… Thanks a bunch!!

    · Reply
    • I added the details at the end of the recipe, for clarification.

      · Reply
  • Oksana

    What does the white cream/frosting between the cake & the chocolate outside made of? Also, what is the chocolate glaze made of? Thanks so much! This cake looks to-die-for!!! (I’ve been eyeing this cake for a long now; still haven’t developed the courage to make it :/)

    · Reply
    • The white layer is just cool whip. I used it to even out the sides of the cake, to be able to decorate it. The chocolate glaze on top is the one that professionals use it in bakeries…
      Here’s the recipe:

      Dark Chocolate Glaze
      4 g. gelatin (a little less than 1 teaspoon)
      1/4 cup (60 g) heavy cream (35% fat content)
      5 tblsp (60 g) sugar
      1/4 cup (50 g) water
      1/3 (30 g) unsweetened cocoa powder

      Mix gelatin with water and let stand for 5 minutes, allowing the gelatin to bloom.
      Combine the cream, sugar and cocoa in a saucepan and let come to a boil over medium heat. Cook for 3 minutes past the boiling point, mixing with the spoon to prevent scorching.
      Take off the heat, mix in the gelatin and mix thoroughly.
      Let cool, until the glaze covers the back of the spoon. Pour over the cake top right away, evening it out with a spatula.

      This cake is very good, although it is a little labor intensive. If you break the process into a couple of steps, then it’s a little easier. You can bake the dough and the cream a day ahead and refrigerate. Then on the day of the assembly bake the layers and then frost it with cream.
      Hope you gather the courage soon and make it for your family 🙂 and thank you for stopping by and leaving such a lovely comment!

      · Reply
  • inna

    a etot krem na 10 korwov ili na 5-6????

    · Reply
    • хоть на 10 хоть на 5-6. Если хотите коржи тоненькие, то просто крема на каждий корж ставишь тоненькой полосочкой. Если хотите потолще коржи, то ставишь толще полосочки крема. Но даное количества крема сочитаеться с даным количеством коржей.

      · Reply
  • Tanya A

    Can you please post this cake in English?
    It looks so delicious, and I would love to make it also!

    · Reply
    • Thank you Tanya!
      Eventually I will try to, but meanwhile you can use the google translator, while it does a literal translation, you can still understand what it says.

      · Reply
  • Marina

    Тина, да этот торт не то что можно, а обязательно надо поставить в холодильник. Он вкуснее когда он холодный. При чем, стоять в холодильнике может даже пару дней без проблем.

    · Reply
  • Tina

    Марина, а торт можно потом в холодильник поставить? А то я не знаю как безе в холодильнике хранится.

    · Reply
  • Marina

    Сгущенка может быть как сырая так и вареная. Я лично предпочитаю вареную, так как с ней крем не такой жидкий и не стекает с коржа

    · Reply
  • Anonymous

    a zgyshchenka sura chu varena

    · Reply
  • Marina

    thank you 🙂
    да можно заменить на baking powder. Надо 2 ч. л. baking powder.

    · Reply
  • Anonymous

    Ochen kracivui toptik. A ckolko nyzno codu i mozna li ee zamenit Baking powder.

    · Reply

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