Suksessterte (Viking River)

2 whole vanilla beans

2 C + 2 T (425 g) sugar

1¾ C + 2 tsp (425½ ml) heavy cream

15 (225 g) med egg yolks

2¼ C + 1 T + 1½ tsp (530 g) unsalted butter

1 to 2 C (120-240 g) sliced almonds

15 (450 g) med egg whites

4¾ C (600 g) powdered sugar

6¼ C (600 g) extra fine almond flour

Slice vanilla beans lengthwise; scrape out seeds. Add sugar, heavy cream and vanilla seeds to a pot, bring to boiling, strain over egg yolks, mix to combine; chill in refrigerator overnight. Whip in butter until smooth; set aside.

Preheat oven to 340°F (170°C). Spread almonds on a dry cookie sheet, bake 4 minutes. Shake pan to shift almonds every minute to check for slight browning and fragrant aroma; when done, remove from oven and immediately pour onto a room temperature plate. Set aside, leaving oven on to bake sponge.

Whip egg whites and powdered sugar until stiff peaks form. Sift in almond flour, mix carefully until just combined, place mixture in springform pan lined with parchment paper; bake 30 minutes. Let cool completely in pan before removing sides and slicing into three horizontal layers. Layer vanilla cream filling between sponge layers, then cover top and sides of cake with remaining filling and sliced almonds.