Lapis Cempedak

This post is just taking me too long to complete.... I've logged in many times & just managed to do bit by bit.... I was so excited after baking & taking the pictures of the Lapis Cempedak that I couldn't wait to blog about it. But there are just too many things happening with the family. Both my father & father-in-law are in the hospital, with the latter in critical condition. As I'm the family driver who's not working, I've been busy ferrying family members on both sides.... As I'm rambling here, I'm actually on stand-by, waiting to be called up to ferry the in-laws & relatives visiting from Malaysia to the hospital... May Allah give us the strength & patience to go through this period.. Ameen..

This Lapis Cempedak was baked a few days before Hari Raya Haji using the cempedak that I bought from JB. I used the recipe that was shared by Bro Rozzan, a recipe that many bloggers have tried & has had positive remarks. No wonder..... this is truly an amazing lapis cake. Even before I finished baking it, I'm already in love with this sweet-smelling cake with its perfectly-looking layers. The top of every layer turned out so beautifully... it baked into a clean golden colour with just some tiny pale patches & there were no bubbles formed at all! And when I cut the cake, I can just say, OMG!!! The cake is very moist & so delicious! The only thing is, I thought it's quite sweet, so the next time I bake this, I'll reduce the sugar used when cooking the cempedak puree.

If you intend to bake this, let me warn you that baking it took longer than the usual time taken to bake a typical lapis cake. It took me two & a half hours to finish baking just one cake. That's at least an hour longer than usual. The longer baking time is because of the additional layer of cempedak puree that has to be baked till dry. It took me almost 4 minutes for each puree layer, longer than baking the cake batter layer. From this experience, I can safely say that it will take a longer time to bake lapis cake that has ingredients other than the cake batter, like the Lapis Nutella & Lapis Fruit Cocktail. Ok, it's almost time for me to go, so here is the  recipe... try baking it, it's really worth all the effort & time.

(Update: Go to this post for another great Lapis Cempedak recipe.)

Lapis Cempedak

Ingredients:

500g butter - I used unsalted.
4 tbsp sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp cempedak essence (optional) - I didn't use.
1 tsp vanilla essence - I used pure vanilla paste.
1 tsp salt - I added.

20 egg yolks
5 whole eggs egg whites (Update: I'm so sorry... I  made a typo.)
270gm fine caster sugar
1 tbsp ovalette

120g Hong Kong / Top flour (I used top flour.)
20g milk powder
150g  cempedak puree (recipe below)

Method:

1. Preheat oven at 170-180 deg C. Grease & line the bottom of a 10” x 7” or 8” x 8” baking pan.
2. Combine butter, condensed milk, vanilla & cempedak essence in a bowl & cream until light & fluffy. Set aside.
3. Place eggs, caster sugar & ovalette  in a mixing bowl & beat on high speed until thick & fluffy.
4. Add the butter mixture into the egg mixture & mix well.
5. Then fold in the flour.
6. Finally, add in cempedak puree (150g) & mix well.
7. Pour 2 ladles of batter (I weighed 90g) into the baking pan & spread it out evenly. Bake until the cake is cooked & the top turns golden brown. Use top & bottom heat for this first layer. Then for the second layer onwards, use top heat (grill) only.
8. Repeat step 7.
9. Then scoop 2 tbsps of cempedak puree onto the second layer & spread it evenly. Bake it in the oven until the puree is dry. (I baked mine for 3-4 minutes.)
10. Then continue baking 2 layers of cake batter followed by 1 layer of cempedak puree until finish.
11. After baking the last layer,  bake the whole cake using top & bottom heat at 130-140 deg C for about 10 minutes. Remove cake from pan and allow to cool on a cooling wire rack before serving.

CEMPEDAK PUREE

600g cempedak flesh (without seeds)
220g fine caster sugar
220 ml water
Combine the above 3 ingredients & blend into a smooth puree. Then cook, stirring continuously, until the puree is thick.

Notes & modifications:

1. If the cempedak you use is already very sweet, you may want to reduce the sugar for the cempedak puree.
2. The cooked cempedak puree is for adding into the batter (150g) & layering after every 2 layers of cake batter.
3. According to Bro Rozzan, for a richer lapis cempedak flavour, you may brush some butter on every cake layer except the puree layer. (I didn't do this.) He also suggests that the cempedak-puree layer be baked after every cake layer instead of after every 2 layers. (I didn't do this & have no intention of doing it ever in the future! Haha!)
4. I added the cempedak puree into the creamed butter (step 2) instead of after folding in the flour (step 6).
5. Instead of using top & bottom fire for the first layer (Step 7), I used only the top fire (grill) for the first & the rest of the layers. I still baked the whole cake as in step 11.

Recipe by Bro Rozzan.