"HiTech RedNeck" > wrote in
message m...
> I sometimes visit a hotel buffet where they serve a dessert in an
> approximately12 inch wide round warming dish that comprises some kind
of
> soaked cake. They have had several different varieties, which are
decorated
> with bits of berries and kiwi fruit. The cake is sliced, stacked
> spiral-wise in the round dish, and completely soaked with a liquid,
not too
> sweet, which is about the consistency of corn syrup, yet the cake
holds
> together well enough to remain intact when carefully spooned out of
the
> dish. And the dish is not full of spare liquid - the cake seems to
have
> been well drained, or else the liquid carefully proportioned to the
cake.
> How could something like this be made at home?
Below is a recipe for three-milk cake (pastel de tres leches). It's not
exactly the dessert you posted about, but the cake part of it might work
for you (it's a spongy, dense cake that holds together well when
soaked).
HTH,
Mary
Three-Milk Cake (Pastel de Tres Leches)--courtesy of the Houston
Chronicle
This dessert is a favorite on the menus at many Houston Mexican and
South American restaurants. Arnaldo Richards of Pico's reworked a
previously published recipe to fit a 13-by-9-by-2-inch pan, which is
more common to home cooking.
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
4 eggs, separated
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup milk
Fresh strawberries and mint leaves for garnish (optional)
Topping (recipe follows)
Meringue (recipe follows)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 13-by-9-by-2-inch baking
pan. Sift flour with baking powder. In large bowl with clean
beaters, beat egg whites until frothy. Add sugar gradually, beating to
form stiff peaks.
Add yolks, one at a time. Slowly add flour and milk. Pour batter into
prepared pan and bake until edges are golden brown, about 40 to 45
minutes.
Remove from oven and let cool on a rack. Prepare Topping. Pour Topping
over cake and let sit until all the mixture is absorbed, 20 to 30
minutes.
Prepare Meringue and refrigerate. Before serving, cut cake into squares
and spread Meringue over each. Garnish as desired with fresh berries and
mint leaves.
Topping
1(12-ounce) can evaporated milk
1(14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup each milk and sour cream
Combine milks and sour cream (do not beat). Use as directed.
Meringue
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water, heated
3 egg whites
Combine sugar and water in a saucepan. Let sit until sugar is dissolved.
In clean electric mixer bowl with clean beaters, beat egg whites. Slowly
pour sugar syrup over egg whites, beating constantly until meringue
holds stiff peaks. Store in refrigerator. This can be served immediately
but is best made 24 hours ahead and chilled. The meringue will keep,
covered, 2 days in the refrigerator.
Note: The newspaper clipping for this recipe that I have is exactly the
same as the one above except it calls for a whipped cream topping
instead of a meringue. I've had it prepared both ways in restaurants
here, and both ways are equally yummy. The whipped cream topping recipe
is below.
Whipped Cream Topping
2 cups whipping cream
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
Chill cream, bowl, and beaters thoroughly. Beat cream with electric
mixer until it begins to thicken. Gradually add sugar and vanilla and
beat until stiff peaks form. Cover top and sides of cake with whipped
cream with a spatula or knife. Cut cake and serve (or cut the cake in
squares and top with whipped cream when it is served).
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