Niño Envuelto de Merengue con Fresas y Crema
Niño envuelto means “wrapped baby,” and it is basically a sponge cake filled with some kind of jam, cream, cajeta, or mousse, rolled up tightly, and covered with confectioner’s sugar, cream, coconut, almonds, chocolate, or meringue. It is served as a dessert, but you can also find it in panaderías sold in slices. Although I have always loved sweets, cake has never been my favorite dessert, and I think it’s because I really like crunchy things. The one exception to this rule is pastel de fresas con crema (vanilla cake filled and covered with whipped cream and strawberries). When I think about this cake, my mouth waters and I remember the Gran Via bakery, which has been making one of the best versions of this cake since the late 1960s. When the bakery first started, they sold only two things: this strawberry layered cake and huge meringues filled with whipped cream. So, when deciding what kind of niño envuelto to make, it seemed only natural to blend all of these flavors and textures into one. It is important that the eggs be at room temperature to ensure a spongy cake, so separate the eggs, cover them, and allow to come to room temperature for 30 minutes before whipping.
Recipe information
Yield
serves 8 to 10
Ingredients
Cake
Meringue
Filling
Preparation
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease 2 baking sheets and line with parchment paper. Reserve one of the prepared baking sheets for the meringue and lightly grease and flour the parchment paper of the one you will use for the cake.
Step 2
TO MAKE THE CAKE, in a bowl, beat the egg yolks with the granulated sugar and salt until thick and pale, about 5 minutes. Add the vanilla. In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites until they are stiff, but not dry, 4 to 6 minutes. Carefully fold the egg whites into the egg-yolk mixture. Sprinkle a little bit of the sifted flour on top, fold in carefully, and repeat, gradually adding the rest of the flour. Spread the batter evenly on the prepared pan using an offset spatula.
Step 3
Bake until the cake is golden and springs back when lightly pressed in the center, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove the cake from the oven and let cool. Decrease the oven temperature to 275°F. Once the cake has cooled slightly, run a knife around the edges, put a piece of parchment paper on top, flip it over, remove the parchment paper from the bottom, and leave bottom side up to spread the filling.
Step 4
TO MAKE THE MERINGUE, make sure your bowl is very clean and very dry. Beat the egg whites with the salt until it is bubbly and beginning to thicken but has not quite reached soft peaks. Gradually add the granulated sugar while still beating, and continue to beat until stiff but not dry peaks form, 3 to 5 minutes.
Step 5
Spoon the meringue into a piping bag fitted with a tip attachment or into a plastic bag with the corner cut off. Pipe strips 4 to 6 inches long onto the reserved baking sheet. Bake until dry, 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool. Crush slightly, if desired.
Step 6
TO MAKE THE FILLING, beat the heavy cream with an electric mixer or by hand until slightly thickened. Add the confectioner’s sugar and vanilla and continue beating until thick and smooth, 5 to 7 minutes total.
Step 7
You are now ready to assemble the cake. Make sure that you leave a little bit of filling, strawberries, and plenty of meringue for topping. Spread some of the filling all over the cake, sprinkle on some of the crushed meringue, and top with a layer of strawberries. Roll tightly away from you, tuck the seam under the roll, cover with the remaining filling, and decorate with the remaining strawberries. Freeze for 15 minutes or refrigerate for 30 minutes (don’t refrigerate it for longer than 1 hour or the meringue will lose its crunch). Top with the remaining meringue, decorating as you wish. Serve immediately (as if you could resist the temptation!).
