Recipe: Leonetta's Rum Cake
Makes one 9-inch, 2-layer cake to serve 6 or 8
In lieu of frosting, this just-for-grownups cake gets a custard-like crème "filling," which is spread all over the cake, not just between the layers.
For the cake
1 ¼ cups unbleached white flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
6 eggs, separated
¼ teaspoon table salt
1 cup sugar, divided
¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
¼ cup dark rum
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the rum "soak"
1 ¼ cups strong brewed coffee
¾ cup dark rum
For the crème
6 egg yolks
¼ cup sugar
3 tablespoons flour
2 cups (1 pint) heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons dark rum
1. Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans, and line them with baker's parchment. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together the flour and baking powder in a small mixing bowl and set aside.
2. Put the egg whites in the bowl of an upright electric mixer and the yolks in a separate large mixing bowl.
3. Stir the salt into the egg whites and whip on high speed until they are light and fluffy. With the motor still running, stream in half of the sugar and continue beating until the egg whites form a stiff meringue.
4. Meanwhile, whisk the remaining sugar, the melted butter, the rum and the vanilla extract into the egg yolks and beat until smooth.
5. Fold half the beaten egg whites and half the flour mixture into the egg-yolk mixture, then fold in the remaining egg-white mixture and the remaining flour mixture, lifting and stirring the batter gently with a silicone or rubber spatula until it's smooth.
6. Transfer the batter to the prepared cake pans and bake until the cakes are puffed and golden brown, and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool the cake in the pans before frosting.
7. Spoon the rum "soak" over the cooled cakes, pressing lightly with the back of a spoon to help them absorb the liquid.
8. To make the crème, put the egg yolks, sugar and flour in a heavy saucepan and whisk until smooth. Stir in the heavy cream and cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly until it is thick and boiling hot. Remove from heat, cool to room temperature, then stir in the rum; transfer the filling to a glass pan to chill. Remove the cakes from the pans.
9. Spread about a third of the chilled crème onto one of the cake layers and put the second layer on top. Spread half of the remaining crème over the top of the cake and, with an offset spatula, spread the remaining crème over the sides.
Greg Atkinson, 1995