I decided to make a very simple cake with my granddaughter Shorey that she could duplicate for her mother, Claudine’s, birthday. Claudine loves pound cakes, and she also likes the jam or jelly filling I used for the Christmas Yule log (bûche de Noël) I made for her when she was growing up.
I trimmed the cake, and Shorey made crumbs with the trimmings in a food processor. I sliced the cake lengthwise into four slices, using strips of wood (or cardboard) that are about 3/4 inch thick on each side of the cake as a guide. The slices are coated with the raspeberry jam and the cake is reassembled. Then the sides and top are coated with more jam and the cake is finished with the ground cake trimmings. Serve the slices with sour cream on top.
Buy a good all-butter pound cake and seedless raspberry jam.
Ingredients
| 1 all-butter pound cake (1 lb.) |
| ⅔ c. seedless raspberry jam |
| ¾ to 1 c. sour cream |
Preparation
1. Using a long, thin knife, trim the cake top, sides and ends, removing about 1/4 inch of the exterior, so the cake is smooth and straight.
2. Place the cake trimmings in a food processor and process for about 15 seconds to turn the trimmings into crumbs. (You should have about 1 1/4 cup crumbs).
3. Place two pieces of wood, about 3/4 inch thick, against the long sides of the trimmed cake. Place your knife flat against the wood and, using it as a guide, cut a slice about 3/4 inch thick from the cake. Set this bottom slice aside and repeat so the cake is cut into a total of 4 slices.
4. Heat the jam in a small cup in a microwave oven for one minute, then stir with a whisk to make it smooth and spreadable. Using a spoon, coat the bottom slice of the cake with about 2 tablespoons of the warmed jam. Place the second cake slice on top and coat it with more jam, then repeat with the remaining slices of cake. Use the rest of the jam to coat the top and sides of the cake. Sprinkle the crumbs on the top and sides of the cake, pressing them with your hand. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
5. At serving time, cut the cake into 1-inch slices and serve each with a tablespoon of sour cream.
Serves 6 to 8.
From A Grandfather’s Lessons: In the Kitchen with Shorey by Jacques Pépin. Copyright © 2017. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Photographs by Tom Hopkins.
