The Louise Cake was a household staple in many kiwi homes, no doubt. There’s something nostalgic about the Louise Cake as it was something my grandmother always made. She liked to make the Louise Cake in muffin tins so that everyone had a single serve, which would save the debate about who got the larger slice.
Because this recipe is a classic, I didn’t want to change too much about it. I believe in the saying ‘don’t fix what isn’t broken’. However since many may know I’m a big fan of the peanut butter and jam combo, especially in a sandwich with fresh white bread, and since the Louise Cake already has a delicious jam layer, I wondered what it would be like to sneak in a hint of peanut butter and turn this classic into a new favourite! I also decided to keep the coconut in this recipe, because after all it wouldn’t be a Louise Cake without the fluffy coconut topping.
I now introduce my Peanut Butter and Jam Louise Cake, a subtle peanut flavoured base, topped with raspberry jam, fluffy coconut topping and sprinkled with a peanut butter crumb.
- Base
- 270g Plain Flour
- 1½ Teaspoon Baking Powder
- 100g Caster Sugar
- ¼ Teaspoon Salt
- 100g Butter - Room Temp
- 100g Peanut Butter
- 2 Large Egg Yolks
- Filling
- ½ Cup Raspberry Jam
- Topping
- 60g Caster Sugar
- 90g Desiccated Coconut
- 2 Large Egg Whites
- 50g Peanut Butter
- 50g Icing Sugar
- Flick oven on to 180 degrees bake and line a square 20cm baking tin.
- Either using a hand-held beater or a free-standing mixer, beat the butter, peanut butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy.
- Continue to beat in the egg yolks one at a time, reserving the whites until later.
- Sift in the flour and baking powder and mix until it forms a crumbly dough. Press this in to the base of your prepared tin and bake for about 10 minutes. Remove and allow to cool slightly while we make the topping.
- In a medium sized bowl, beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Slowing add the sugar and continue to beat until dissolved and glossy.
- Fold the dessicated coconut through the egg white mixture and set aside.
- With the base slightly cooled, evenly cover with a layer of raspberry jam before carefully covering with the layer of prepared egg white and coconut mixture.
- Using a food processor or simply mixing with a fork, pulse together the peanut butter and icing sugar until it forms a crumb. Sprinkle this over the top of the slice and bake for 15-20 minutes or until the top has started to turn a golden colour.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool inside tin before slicing and serving. Enjoy.
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