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Sobao Cakes with Crème Anglaise

Sobao cakes are popular in Spain, consisting of butter, sugar, eggs, and flour, with a texture similar to a light pound cake.
This simple recipe utilizes storebought sobaos, although you can substitute with cakes, cookies, or muffins for an equally-delicious treat.
The recipe below explains how to make a smooth crème Anglaise from scratch at home, which is a recipe and technique you learn in culinary school. While the sauce is somewhat difficult to make for the first time, it’s a really useful item to practice if you want to improve your cooking skills.
You will also need a blowtorch, if you are trying to caramelize the added sugar on top of the sabao cakes before serving.

Ingredients

  • 5 egg yolks
  • ¼ cup white granulated sugar
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 cup whole milk
  • A few grains of Kosher salt
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • 8 Sabao cakes (warmed in the oven for a few minutes prior to serving)
  • 2 Tbsp white granulated sugar (if using blow torch)
  • A blowtorch (for caramelizing the added sugar)

Instructions 

  • Fill a sauce pot with one inch of water, and bring the water to a gentle simmer and then turn the heat to low.
  • *The vapor from this steaming water will be used to gently cook the crème Anglaise later.
  • In another small sauce pot, add the heavy cream and milk, and bring the liquid almost to a gentle simmer.
  • Remove the hot milk and heavy cream from the heat.
  • Stir half of the white granulated sugar (2 Tbsp) into the milk and cream, until the sugar dissolves completely.
  • In a metal mixing bowl, add the egg yolks and the remaining white granulated sugar (2 Tbsp), and whisk until combined.
  • Wait ten minutes for the milk and cream to cool down.
  • Pour the warm heavy cream and milk mixture very slowly into the egg yolk mixture while you are simultaneously whisking the egg yolks.
  • *If you whisk the sauce too aggressively at this stage, you can potentially incorporate too much air into the sauce, which will give the surface of the sauce a very foamy and aerated appearance. The goal here is simply to mix the contents as you are adding the hot liquid, to avoid the eggs from scrambling and the bring them up to temperature gradually.
  • When the cream and milk mixture is fully incorporated into the egg yolks, carefully place the metal bowl on top of the sauce pot with the steaming water, so that the bowl is not touching the surface but it being heated by the steam that is rising from the hot water.
  • Stir the sauce constantly in the bowl that is sitting over the steaming water, making sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl to avoid the eggs from scrambling.
  • When the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (or reaches about 165-170˚F), remove the sauce from the heat, and strain it through a fine mesh strainer into another bowl.
  • Warm the sabao cakes briefly in the oven, until they are warmed-through but not crispy.
  • Serve the smooth crème Anglaise sauce in the bottom of bowls, topped with the sabao cakes that you warmed up.
  • Sprinkle some white granulated sugar on top of the sabao cakes, and use a blowtorch to carefully caramelize the sugar on top.

Notes

Making crème Anglaise for the first time at home can be very challenging, as there are a couple different things that can go wrong. If your crème Anglaise breaks or you scramble the eggs, don’t be too hard on yourself, and remember that you can still try to strain it out and enjoy it with the sobao cakes.