Poppy Seed Cake with Cranberries

INSTRUCTIONS FOR POPPY SEED BASE

• 1
  Line the bottom of a 23 cm diameter cake tin with baking paper, grease the sides with butter, and dust with almond flour.
• 2
  Mix ground poppy seeds with almond flour and finely grated chocolate. Separate the eggs into whites and yolks.
• 3
  Cream the butter with vanilla and powdered sugar until fluffy. Gradually incorporate the yolks one by one into the mixture. Whip the egg whites with salt into a foam, gradually whisking in the brown sugar by spoonfuls. Carefully fold the foam together with the dry ingredients into the butter mixture. Pour the batter into the prepared tin, smooth it out, and bake for about 35 minutes in a fan-assisted oven preheated to 170°C. Let it cool in the tin after baking.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR CREAM

• 1
  Steam the oranges: Wash them, scrub with a brush, and pour boiling water over them three times to remove wax and other impurities. Grate the orange layer of the peel finely and squeeze the juice.
• 2
  Whip the butter with sugar and half of the orange zest into a foam (about 10 minutes), add the cheese and half of the orange juice, and beat for another 5 minutes until a smooth, fluffy cream forms. Use the remaining zest and juice for the cranberry jelly.
• 3
  Spread the cream evenly over the entire poppy seed base enclosed in the cake tin, smoothing the surface flat. Place the cake tin in the refrigerator to let the cream set.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR CRANBERRY JELLY

• 1
  Soak the gelatin in a little cold water and let it swell (it resembles a crumpled plastic bag).
• 2
  Boil 200 ml of water with sugar, orange juice, and zest, add the cranberries, bring back to a boil, and reduce the heat. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. The cranberries will burst and start to gel during cooking. Remove the pot from the heat and stir the swollen, squeezed gelatin into the cranberries. Let it cool, stirring occasionally, until the jelly begins to set slightly. Pour it over the chilled cream. Return the cake to the refrigerator for at least two hours.
• 3
  Before serving, carefully release the edges of the cake with a spatula and remove it from the tin.