Lamingtons

Every now and then, I get a hankering for something different. Every blue moon, I will crave something I've never had before.

My blue moon has risen.

Since my husband is British, I am American, and we live in Canada, I decided to skip what I know, ignore my cookbooks on the shelf and hit the internet for inspriation. The first stop on the information superhighway? Martha Stewart. She has made every sweet and savory menu item known to man; she's the best place to start.

After searching her site, I came across Lamingtons. I never heard of them, but they sounded interesting. As I did some more digging, I discovered Lamingtons are native of Australia. Bingo. (Or should I say Dingo!?) Because it would only be appropriate to do as they do in Rome, I wanted to delve further for an authentic Australian Lamingtons recipe. No offense Martha.

Unfortunately, all the Australian websites I visited required the use of day old/ready made/box cake. This only increased my determination to find a genuine recipe. After about 15 minutes of even more searching, I finally found this recipe that seemed to tick all the boxes on my checklist. With a few Aussies raving about how incredible they are and how this recipe took them back to their childhood, I couldn't go wrong. 

Wrong was the last place I went. These are AMAZING. After eating a few, I'm not surprised the Aussies have a national Lambingtons Day. These little cakes are definitely something to be celebrated.

At least the recipe doesn't require Vegemite. *shudder*

LAMINGTONS

Recipe adapted from Aussie chef Syrie Wongkaew 

CAKE:

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

½ cup butter, room temperature

¾ cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

½ cup milk

ICING:

2 cups confectioners sugar

1/3 cup cocoa powder

3 tablespoons butter

½ cup milk

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Lightly butter an 8 inch square cake pan; set aside.

In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after adding each egg. Add vanilla to the mixture and mix well to combine.

Use a spatula to alternately add the flour mixture and milk, in three additions, starting and finishing with the flour.

Spread the batter into the cake pan, making sure it's evenly spread.

Bake in the oven for about 30 minutes. Test the center of the cake with a toothpick and make sure it comes out clean. Cool the cake in pan for about 5 minutes and  invert onto a wire rack to cool.

Once the cake has cooled cut it into squares of a desired size. I opted for the two-bite size.

Place them in an airtight container. Pop the container in the fridge for at least 2 hours or even overnight. This is a crucial part as it helps the cake from crumbling once it comes in contact with the chocolate icing.

For an extra special treat, you can also fill the Lamingtons. To do so, cut a cake square in half and generously spread strawberry jam, finishing off by sandwiching together. This must be done before applying the icing.

Now for the icing.

Place icing sugar, cocoa powder, butter and milk in a heat proof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water.

Stir the mixture until it is smooth, but still a bit thick. You don't want the liquid to get too thin otherwise the sponge cake won't absorb the coating.
Working quickly, dip cake into chocolate and coat on all sides. 

Shake off excess chocolate and gently roll coated cake in coconut.

Lamingtons can be stored in an airtight container for 5 days.

Yield: 25 two-bite pieces.