A torte (; from (), in turn from

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

via ) is a rich, usually multilayered,

cake Cake is a flour confection usually made from flour, sugar, and other ingredients and is usually baked. In their oldest forms, cakes were modifications of bread, but cakes now cover a wide range of preparations that can be simple or elabor ...

that is filled with

whipped cream Whipped cream, also known as Chantilly cream or (), is high-fat dairy cream that has been aerated by whisking until it becomes light, fluffy, and capable of holding its shape. This process incorporates air into the cream, creating a semi-soli ...

buttercream Buttercream, also referred to as butter icing (food), icing or butter frosting, is used for either filling (cooking), filling, coating or cake decorating, decorating cakes. The main ingredients are butter and some type of sugar. Buttercream is ...

mousse A mousse (, ; ) is a soft prepared food that incorporates air bubbles to give it a light and airy texture. Depending on preparation techniques, it can range from light and fluffy to creamy and thick. A mousse may be sweet or savory. as early ...

s, jams, or fruit. Tortes are commonly baked in a

springform pan A springform pan is a type of Cookware and bakeware, bakeware that features sides that can be removed from the base. Springform refers to the construction style of this pan. The base and the sides are separate pieces that are held together wh ...

Sponge cake Sponge cake is a light cake made with egg whites, flour and sugar, sometimes leavened with baking powder. Some sponge cakes do not contain egg yolks, like angel food cake, but most do. Sponge cakes, leavened with beaten eggs, originated during ...

is a common base, but a torte's cake layers may instead be made with little to no

flour Flour is a powder made by Mill (grinding), grinding raw grains, List of root vegetables, roots, beans, Nut (fruit), nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredie ...

, using ingredients such as ground nuts or

breadcrumbs Breadcrumbs are a culinary ingredient consisting of flour or crumbled bread of varying dryness, sometimes with seasonings added. They are used for a variety of purposes, including breading or crumbing foods before frying (such as breaded cutlet ...

. Ordinarily, the cooled torte is glazed and garnished.

Origin

The best-known of the typical tortes include the

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

Sachertorte Sachertorte ( , ; ) is a chocolate sponge cake covered with chocolate glaze, with an interior layer of apricot jam either under the glaze or in the middle of two sponge layers. The cake was invented by Franz Sacher, either in 1832 for Aus ...

and Linzertorte, the German Schwarzwälder Kirschtorte, and the many-layered Hungarian Dobos torte. But other well-known European confections are also tortes, such as the French Gâteau St. Honoré. In Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine, and Russia cakes are usually called tortes without differentiating between ''cake'' and ''torte''. In Polish, as an example, the word ''torte'' is translated into Polish as ''tort'', but ''tort'' can be also translated as ''

layer cake A layer cake (US English) or sandwich cake (UK English) is a cake consisting of multiple stacked sheets of cake, held together by a filling such as frosting, jam, or other preserves. Most cake recipes can be adapted for layer cakes; butte ...

'' or '' cream cake''.

Icing

An element common to some tortes is sweet icing (exceptions are several French tortes, such as

Gâteau Mercédès A Swiss roll, jelly roll (United States), roll cake, cream roll, roulade, Swiss log or swiss cake is a type of rolled sponge cake filled with whipped cream, jam, buttercream, icing, or any type of filling. The origins of the term are unclear; ...

and Gâteau Alcazar). When the cake is layered, a thick covering of icing is placed between the layers, and there is almost always icing on the tops and sides of the torte. An example is the whiskey cake. A number of European tortes do not have layers. Some, for instance German-style "Käsesahnetorte", are unbaked.

Well-known European tortes

* Dobos torte *

* Esterházy torte * Kyiv torte * Linzer torte *

Swiss roll A Swiss roll, jelly roll (United States), roll cake, cream roll, roulade, Swiss log or swiss cake is a type of rolled sponge cake filled with whipped cream, jam, icing, or any type of filling. The origins of the term are unclear; in spite of ...

* Napoleon torte * Gâteau Pithiviers * Princess cake *

Prinzregententorte Prinzregententorte () is a Bavarian torte consisting of at least six, usually seven, thin layers of sponge cake interlaid with chocolate buttercream. The exterior is covered in a dark chocolate glaze. Prinzregententorte is very popular in Bavari ...

* Runeberg torte * Tarta de Santiago *

Black Forest gateau Black Forest gateau, ( , ) or Black Forest cake, is a layer cake made out of cocoa powder, Sour Cherry, cherries, ''Kirsch'', and whipped cream, with dark chocolate as a decoration. The origins of the cake and its name are disputed. However, th ...

* Smörgåstårta * St. Honoré cake

References

{{Authority control Cakes

Origin

Icing

Well-known European tortes

See also

References