Angela DealeThe case of the mysterious cake filling
For the occasion of my son's 8th birthday, my mom ordered a cake from a Chinese (Hong Kong-style) bakery, which is something she's done for several years now. Chinese cakes are somewhat different from western cakes in that they're usually less sweet and--I think but am not entirely sure--made like chiffon cakes, with no butter. The crumb is not too dense, not too moist, and rather springy. So good!
My son's favourite Chinese cake is a cream-and-fruit-filled layer cake. It is simple and delicious, and certainly not as decadent as many western varieties. But when we opened the bakery box we were surprised by its contents:
What is all that piled on top? Did Gordon Ramsey, in a fit of pique, dump a plate of sub-par noodles on top of my son's cake? I took a smidge of it with my fork. Hmm--soft but not gooey. Slightly sweet, with a familiar yet not readily identifiable flavour. After everyone tried their slices, most of us thought it was red bean (also known by the Japanese name azuki) mixed with something else, though none of us could pinpoint all of the flavours.
Poor kid! My son didn't finish his slice of cake, and many others ate around the filling. As for me, I'll eat almost anything, so I had not one but two servings. (*burp*) The flavour was fine if unexpected; only the aesthetics were lacking. Too bad the filling wasn't piped attractively on top of the cake, or simply spread between the layers. As it was, whenever I looked closely at the filling, I couldn't help thinking of ground meat or something that'd been pressed through a Play-Doh spaghetti-making sieve.
My son's favourite Chinese cake is a cream-and-fruit-filled layer cake. It is simple and delicious, and certainly not as decadent as many western varieties. But when we opened the bakery box we were surprised by its contents:
We reached no consensus on the filling.
What is all that piled on top? Did Gordon Ramsey, in a fit of pique, dump a plate of sub-par noodles on top of my son's cake? I took a smidge of it with my fork. Hmm--soft but not gooey. Slightly sweet, with a familiar yet not readily identifiable flavour. After everyone tried their slices, most of us thought it was red bean (also known by the Japanese name azuki) mixed with something else, though none of us could pinpoint all of the flavours.
Poor kid! My son didn't finish his slice of cake, and many others ate around the filling. As for me, I'll eat almost anything, so I had not one but two servings. (*burp*) The flavour was fine if unexpected; only the aesthetics were lacking. Too bad the filling wasn't piped attractively on top of the cake, or simply spread between the layers. As it was, whenever I looked closely at the filling, I couldn't help thinking of ground meat or something that'd been pressed through a Play-Doh spaghetti-making sieve.
