Almond Spongecake Discs

1. Place 3 pieces of parchment paper on 3 baking sheets and grease them with butter or spray them with Pam
2. Beat egg whites until foamy – about 2 minutes
3. Add the corn starch until soft peaks form – 1 minute
4. Add the sugar and beat until stiff peaks form about 5 -7 more minutes
5. Stop and gently fold in the sifted almond flour to retain as much air in the mixture as possible
6. Place an 8-3/4” cake ring on one of the parchment papers. Fill and pipe the almond meringue in a circular fashion within the ring. Remove the ring and smooth the meringue. Repeat two more times.
7. Bake on convect heat at 350 for 15 minutes, remove and let them cool. Trim if necessary and freeze overnight
8. Start the vanilla cream filling by refrigerating the egg mixture overnight in a covered bowl

Vanilla Buttercream Filling

1. Set the butter out the night before when you make the sponge cake crusts
2. Whisk together the sugar, heavy cream and vanilla extract in a pot and bring it to the boiling point
3. Drizzle it slowly while whisking vigorously and carefully over the egg yolks and continue to whisk it together until a uniform mixture
4. Refrigerate the egg mixture overnight
5. Next day – whip the butter at room temperature, add the yolk mixture and keep whipping until fluffy

Final Assembly

1. Spread the sliced almonds over a full baking sheet and roast at 350 for 7-8 minutes until toasted and fragrant
2. Place a schmear of buttercream on the center of a cake plate. This will keep the disc from sliding or moving while you assemble the cake. Place one of the sponge cake discs centered on the plate, then place strips of waxed paper under the edges to facilitate a clean finished presentation, free of smeared icing.
3. Pipe the filling in a spiral on the sponge-cake (optional if you have a steady hand with a spatula) Use an icing spatula to cover the first disc completely with the cream filling. . Place a second sponge disc on top, ice it and repeat again a third time with the final sponge cake
4. Cover the sides with the remaining buttercream filling, smooth the top and then cover the entire cake with the roasted almonds. Use all the buttercream to make the cake.
5. Refrigerate and slice while cold. Remove from the fridge an hour before serving.