There are many jokes that can be made about the dessert for tomorrow thanks to the main ingredient: prunes. Poor unloved prunes. Not as sexy as dried apricots or figs, cranberries or cherries. Heck, even raisins get better press. But I'm a huge fan of dried fruit, including dried plums, so prunes it is!
Two parts to the dessert. I'm in the middle of assembling a cake right now (two of the five layers are just out of the oven and cooling).
The recipe calls it "Icelandic Vinaterta", and it's essentially five big butter cookies (scented with cardamom)
sandwiching a filling of prunes cooked soft and flavoured with cinnamon and almond extract.
I've made it before - it's a bit of an in-joke with a former colleague, in fact - and I know that the cake can be a little dry and stodgy. So, to go alongside I've just popped some ice cream into the freezer. The flavour? Prune, of course. And a nice bit of dry sherry. It's a felicitous combination - the caramel, yeasty notes of the sherry are a terrific foil for the prunes.
I abstained from eating any of the scones or tartlets from last night, and now you will understand why - lots of sweet goodness to lick off spoons tonight!
I'll photograph and blog the finished cake tomorrow. Now to get this messy kitchen cleaned up before Conrad gets home from Austin!
Posts
