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lamington cake with apricot

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Ingredients

for the cake:

  • 6 large eggs (330g)
  • 150g granulated sugar (3/4 cup)
  • 150g all purpose flour (1 cup + 2 tablespoons)
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

for the filling:

  • 230g heavy whipping cream (1 cup)
  • 15g sugar (1 tablespoon)
  • 1 cake-sized sheet of good quality qamardeen (can easily substitute apricot jam)*

for the decoration:

  • 175g milk (3/4 cup)
  • 14g butter (1 tablespoons)
  • 225g chopped chocolate (1 1/2 cups)
  • 100g finely shredded coconut (1 cup)

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C) convection.** Line 2 8-inch round cake pans with parchment.
  2. Combine the eggs and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Beat on high with the whisk attachment until it turns very pale and more than doubles in size (about 6 minutes). When you lift the beaters, the trail will slowly disappear back into itself after 1 full second. Set aside.
  3. In a small mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Sift about 1/3 of the flour mixture evenly over the surface of the whipped eggs/sugar and carefully fold it in with a rubber spatula, scraping the bottom. Repeat with the next 1/3, and then with the final 1/3.
  4. Divide the batter evenly between the 2 lined cake pans, and spread the batter evenly all the way to the edges of the pans. Drop the pans from about an inch above the counter once or twice to knock out any big air bubbles.
  5. Bake for about 15 minutes. To test for doneness, gently press on the surface toward the middle—it should slowly spring back after a second.
  6. Carefully run a knife around the edges to free the cakes, transfer them to a cooling rack, and peel off their parchment paper. Let them cool.
  7. Whip the cream: Place the whipping cream and 15g sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Use the whisk attachment to beat to stiff peaks (keep a close eye on it so it doesn’t overbeat).
  8. Cut out the qamardeen (if you’re using apricot jam instead, skip this part): Open up a package of qamardeen and place it on a cutting board with the plastic still underneath it (or use a sheet of parchment instead). Place an 8-inch round pan on top of the qamardeen, and use a sharp knife to trace around the edge of the pan to cut out a circle of qamardeen (use scissors if you have trouble). Remove the qamardeen scraps from around the cake pan. Set the 8” circle aside until you’re ready to use it.
  9. Place one cake layer on a cooling rack set over a sheet pan. Top with a thin layer of whipped cream (about 1/8 inch thick), followed by the round qamardeen sheet (carefully lift the plastic away from it once you’re ready to place it). Top the qamardeen with another thin layer of whipped cream, followed by the other layer (flat-side-up).
  10. Fill in any gaps on the side with a little extra remaining whipped cream and smooth the sides out.
  11. Once the cake is assembled with the qamardeen and cream, heat the milk and butter in the microwave (or stove) until it’s barely simmering. Pour over the chocolate in a small bowl and let it sit for 2 minutes. Stir together until it’s totally smooth.
  12. Pour the chocolate sauce over the top while it’s still warm and runny, and use an offset spatula to encourage it down the sides to coat everything evenly (no worries about smoothness). Sprinkle shredded coconut over the top and pat it on the sides until it’s evenly coated.***
  13. Let the cake sit in the fridge for at least 2 hours and then let it sit out for about 30 minutes before slicing and serving.   Storage: While cakes don’t usually keep very well in the refrigerator, this one will last for about 24 hours (covered) without staling one bit. After that, you should freeze individual slices and thaw them in the microwave as needed (it will technically last longer than 24 hours in the fridge, but all cakes stale in the fridge rather quickly, and last much longer in the freezer).

Notes

* Make sure you use very good quality qamardeen, otherwise the cake will be impossible to cut through. Qamardeens vary a lot in quality, but fresh qamardeen should be chewy but soft, and you should be able to easily tear it with just your hands. If you can’t find good quality qamardeen, you can totally use apricot jam instead (also super delicious, and the exact same flavor). Simply spread a layer of jam on one cake, a layer of whipped cream on the other, and sandwich them together.

** No worries if you don’t have convection—it might just take a couple minutes longer to bake through.

*** Feel free to stop here for a traditional look, or if you want the same exact look as the cake in this post, make sure you scrape up the excess chocolate and coconut from the sheet pan, place it in a small bowl, and chill it for 1 hour. Once it’s firm enough to handle, scoop small pieces of the ganache and roll them into smooth balls. Roll these truffles in a little more shredded coconut. Warm the rest of the unused ganache in the microwave, and dip the very bottom of each truffle in chocolate to help it stick to the cake—arrange them in a circle border.

Find it online: https://cardamomandtea.com/54/apricot-lamington-layer-cake/