Kiwi cake

Yield: 16 Servings

Measure Ingredient
1 \N Unfilled sponge sandwich [8 or 9-inch round white layer cake; not sponge cake]
1 tablespoon Instant coffee
¾ cup Sugar
¼ cup Water
½ tablespoon Rum or brandy [I use rum]
300 millilitres Cream [I use at least a pint of heavy cream; more would be fine] (up to)
8 \N Kiwifruit [4-5 large ones as found in our groceries; hers seem to be smaller; from her garden]
½ cup Slivered almonds [at least--I use more]
½ cup Canned mandarins [mandarin orange segments; I often use fresh sliced strawberries; or both strawberries and mandarin oranges]

From: "Ruth B. Burnham" <rburnham@...> Date: 29 Sep 1995 14:21:20 -0500 Alison Holst is New Zealand's homestyle Julia Child, sort of. Prolific cookbook author, full of good, tested recipes, a wealth of information, etc. This recipe is from her book, _Recipes to Remember_. My comments will be in brackets, otherwise the words are hers: "I use our [kiwi] fruit only when it is ripe enough to pull off the thinnest layer of outer, brown skin with my fingers, and when the green flesh is quite dark and translucent.

Use plenty of Kiwifruit in between the layers of sponge [white layer cake] in this cake. It tastes as good as it looks, and is a good finale to a New Zealand meal.

Kiwi Layer Cake [somewhat annotated from experience and for NZ/US translation]

Split each layer of [cake] so you have four thin round layers. Put one of these aside for other use [or make a really tall, 4-layer cake!] and place the other three side by side on a clean working surface.

Heat the coffee, sugar and water, stirring until the sugar dissolves, then boil without stirring until a drop between your thumb and forefinger forms a thread when your thumb and forefinger are moved a centimeter apart [238 degrees, I think, or thread stage on a candy thermometer--much easier than burning your fingers]. Cool until you can put your hand on the bottom of the container, then stir in the rum or brandy.

Drizzle each of the three sponge layers with a third of the coffee syrup, covering the surface evenly [if you're going to make a 4-layer cake, make more syrup]. Whip the cream stiffly, put a quarter on each of two layers, then cover with two thirds of the thickly sliced kiwifruit. Stack these two layers on a flat serving plate, and cover with the remaining layer. Spread the remaining cream over the top and sides [the thicker the better, IMHO].

Toast the almonds until golden brown, under a grill [broiler--I do it in a dry frying pan on the stove, less chance of burning] and when they are cool press them into the cream on the sides of the cake, tilting it slightly, and rotating it. Cover lightly, and refrigerate at least 12 hours before serving. The texture changes during this time [and the flavors blend delightfully]. Just before serving decorate the top with a ring of overlapping kiwifruit slices. Pile drained mandarin segments in the centre of the cake if desired.

Note: refrigerate leftovers. The kiwifruit between the layers will look good a day later, but the fruit on the top may need to be replaced.

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