Baking, unlike cooking requires precision. It is an edible chemistry project with little room for imbalance. I hate it. But, when a friend turned 50, a birthday dinner was in order, and so was cake. I opted for rum cake - the rest of the meal had Cuban flavors, and rum cake seemed a perfect finale.
It was not a confection on my culinary radar, until a recent trip to Boston and a lovely visit with my great pal, Paula. Dinner in the North End ended with rum cake at a great little bakery. Often a traditional Italian birthday cake, this rum cake had layers of pudding commingling with layers of cake, topped with rich frosting.
The Cuban version mixes pudding with the cake mix, as well as rum, then adds layer upon layer of rum laden glaze to the top of the cake, to be greedily absorbed - yielding a moist, delicious rum soaked dessert.
Rum Cake
As for the rest of the meal, I have included the link I used.
Cuban Style Dinner - Braised Pork, Sweet Potatoes and Accompaniments
Some basic comments:
Brown the pork before you start the braising process. I tried it their way - it was not as moist as I would have liked. Keep your heat low - even with fattier cuts like pork shoulder.
Do make the cabbage salad in advance, it softens the cabbage a bit and really let's the flavor develop. Adding the basil at the end is also a must - it adds a very bright element. I'm thinking if basil is not available, caraway seeds would be interesting, or maybe some shredded fennel.
Taste the corn before you serve - if you use unsalted butter, you may want a bit more salt.
Enjoy!
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Location:Rockville, MD
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