MAZARINS

Everyone is trying to figure out why the Swedish and Danish almond cake recipes were named after Jules Mazarin (1602-1661), the famous Italian-born cardinal who served as prime minister under both Louis XIII and Louix XIV, and here are my thoughts:

• Mazarin was undoubtedly a popular figure in Sweden, whose relations with France improved to such an extent between the 17th and 19th centuries as to have a marshal of the French empire placed on the Swedish throne in 1818.

Cardinal Mazarin - Portrait by Pierre Mignard, 1658-1660

• The name Mazariner (=Mazarin cakes) was not recorded in Scandinavian cookbooks until the second half of the nineteenth century when Mazarin's role in French-Swedish relations was likely forgotten. If the glazing was painted in red to symbolize the Church, naming the cakes after Mazarin would probably have made sense but it didn't happen like that. Swedish Mazariner are glazed with a plain mixture of icing sugar and water; Danish Mazarinkage (=Mazarin cake) is topped with chocolate and/or nuts.

• From a certain point of view, the entire nineteenth century was a triumph of European diplomacy, which helped consolidate the borders of national states. A lot of famous recipes, especially of the haute cuisine, were thus named after diplomats, ministers, and sovereigns in remembrance of great political, and not just military, victories.
  

• The royal cookery book (1880 edition) by Jules & Alphonse Gouffé includes a recipe for Mazarin cake with rum, which is almost exactly the same as the individual Baba cakes featured elsewhere in the book. It's interesting that a 19th century French recipe was named after Mazarin even though it hardly reminds of either Swedish or Danish Mazarin cakes. Was it a matter of politics or just a confusion between Mazarin and Savarin, the gastronomist who inspired the famous variation of Baba in 1844? I wonder.
  

• Mazarin cakes are sometimes related to génoise. Now, there are two kinds of 'Genoese or Genovese cake' and both of them Italian. The first is a light sponge cake, dating perhaps from the nineteenth century and used especially in French cuisine as the base for layered cakes. The second is a rich fruit cake, based on 16th century pandolce which is still traditional in Genoa and made for Christmas. But there is also pain de Gênes, a delicious marzipan loaf enriched with butter, eggs and little bit of flour -exactly as in Mazarin cakes.

• Like Napoleon cake (or mille-feuille), pain de Gênes is of uncertain origin: the version we know today was developed in 1850 by a pastry-maker called Fauvel. It was a round-shaped cake, often glazed with liqueur. Even though Scandinavian Mazarin cakes have not been directly linked to French cuisine, pain de Gênes was surely known to nineteenth century Swedish and Danish pastrymakers. Marzipan has been the number one ingredient for cake and tart fillings in both these countries since at least the nineteenth century.
  

• A version of l' Ambroisie ou pain de Gênes published in Le nouveau pâtissier-glacier français et étranger (1878) by Pierre Lacam has too much in common with Swedish Mazarin cakes: "500gr. d'amandes fraîches pilées avec 8 oeufs, puis 625 gr. de sucre. Bien travailler au mortrier, vanille et kirsch, 125 gr. de fécule, 250 gr. de bierre fondu. Moule génoise canellé avec un papier du fond. Four moyen. Ne glacez que le dessus au kirsch. Avec cette pâte, l'on fait de pommes de terre."
  

 

MAZARINS

In this version of Swedish Mazarin cakes, the dough is based on 'pastaflora recipe no. 2' by Pellegrino Artusi and the filling on 'pain de Gênes' by Pierre Lacam.

 

I n g r e d i e n t s

for the dough:

250g plain flour

100g caster sugar

100g butter, room temperature

1 egg + 1 yolk, lightly beaten

for the filling:

250g almonds, ground

300g caster sugar

3tbsp potato flour (or cornstarch)

100g butter, melted and cooled

2 eggs + 1 white, lightly beaten

1tsp vanilla essence

for the glazing:

160g powdered sugar

2tbsp maraschino (or kirsch)

M e t h o d

To make the dough: Combine the flour and sugar in a bowl. Incorporate the butter using a knife, bind with the egg, and knead with your fingers to make a soft paste. Shape into a ball, wrap in cling film, and leave to rest for 1 hour. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 175oC. To make the filling: Combine the almonds, sugar, and potato flour (or cornstarch) in a bowl. Gradually add the butter, egg, and vanilla, beating into a  smooth mixture. To assemble the cakes: Roll out the dough into a thin sheet. Cut out 18 discs and fit into buttered cake tins. (Alternatively, line the cake tins with paper cups.) Border with leftover dough and trim. Divide the filling among the cake tins and bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden. Leave to cool for 5 minutes. To make the glazing: Combine the sugar and liqueur into a smooth mixture, adding very little water if necessary. Pour over the cakes.

V a r i a t i o n s

1) Make white glazing by using vodka, rum or water instead of cherry-flavored liqueur. 2) Omit the glazing and sift the cakes with powedered sugar.