Cake & Custard Pudding

last week, my mum picked up a pre-mix for basic eggless cake, and wanted to make a chocolate-orange marble cake with it. so we made the batter, and baked it in the microwave, which has a convection oven function – despite my dislike for that contraption (i prefer a proper convection oven any day). even after baking for 30 minutes, the cake was not done, and i had to set it again for 40 minutes. finally, after ages, the skewer emerged clean from the center of the cake and i pulled it out to let it cool. however, when i tried to tip the cake over onto a wire rack, it broke in half!

when the cake had cooled, we realised that it was baked, and tasted good, but couldn’t hold the shape. now, what do you do with a mass of cake bits? i could have made ‘cake truffles’ – but i was in no mood to mess with melted chocolate. and that’s when i remembered this pudding, which had been made and shared by someone very recently. the recipe fitted perfectly, and since i had a lunch to go for couple of days later, there was an occassion too! when i served it at lunch, and shared it with some friends later, it was well appreciated – so you can be sure this is a good dessert choice!

now, this pudding is very easy to make, but i have absolutely no measurements for you. even if you are the kind who needs measures for every single thing (including the exact weight/spoon for a ‘pinch’), don’t panic. making this pudding only depends on how much cake crumbs you have – the rest can be eye-balled very easily, and nothing can really go to waste! so, go buy a cake or bake one if you must to try this out – i promise you it is worth every spoonful!

Ingredients:

Left-over cake (any flavour, regular or eggless)

Marie biscuits

• Custard powder
• Milk
• Whipping cream ((*I used a non-dairy whipping cream mix called ‘Dream Whip’ or something like that)
• Grated chocolate / chopped nuts

Making the Cake & Custard Pudding:

Crumble the cake and keep aside. Crush the biscuits (taking a few at a time) and mix it in with the cake crumbs. The idea is to use an approximate equal measure of cake and biscuit crumbs – not by weight, but by volume (i.e., a cup of crushed biscuit crumbs for one cup of cake crumbs). Use a fork to mix both crumbs well. Take a square or round serving dish, and spread one layer of the crumb mixture. The crumbs should cover the base, and the layer should be slightly thick, but do not press it down. Keep aside. Prep for about twice the amount of custard as the biscuit-cake mixture by volume, and make the custard according to the instructions given (*if you are okay with using eggs, you could add in one egg’s yolk to the custard to make it more creamy). Stir the custard continuously as it is cooling to prevent lumps and skin from forming. When the custard is cool, dribble about half of it on the cake layer using a tablespoon – the custard should completely cover the cake layer. Allow the custard to set and then dribble some more – do not tip the vessel over and pour the custard on top. Let sit for a few minutes so that the custard can set, then gently add another layer of cake crumbs on top. (*Depending on the amount of crumbs and custard you have, plan for two or more layers in all.) Dribble the remaining custard on top of the cake layer – and if this is your final layer, place the serving dish in the fridge for about 10 minutes. Before you are ready to take the pudding out from the fridge, beat the whipping cream until it becomes fluffy and forms soft peaks. Spread the whipping cream in a uniform layer on top of the pudding using a palette/butter knife, and garnish with grated chocolate or chopped nuts. Keep in the fridge until it is ready to serve. (*When serving, use a broad spoon or ladle to scoop up the layers easily.) Dig in!