eau de gateau: annabel's birthday cake from marissa zappas
a cake that tastes like a perfume that smells like a cake... phew cakeception here we go
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hey hi hello!
We are BACK with another “cake that tastes like perfume”. One that was promised to ya last year, but damn does life get in the way. But, we’re here now and this one? WORTH THE WAIT. Aside from Jazz Club, I think this is the cake that tastes the most like how the perfume smells. Maybe, it’s because this perfume is modeled to smell like a cake, which then I modeled back into cake.
Now, before we dive into it we gotta talk about the lil elephant in the room for these cakes, tonka bean. Tonka bean is such a prevalent note in gourmand perfumes. So naturally, a girl making cakes modeled after the edible notes of a perfume is gonna use it in said cakes. But, I thought tonka bean was toxic and illegal in the US? Well, you’d be right on both fronts. Okay, then how am I getting tonka for cakes? and WHY would I use it in the cakes?
The reason tonka is illegal is because it contains a chemical/compound called coumarin- which is toxic in large doses and can cause liver damage. I’m talking large doses, you’d have to consume 30+ beans. When it comes to flavoring with tonka, a little goes a long way. For reference I use about 1/8-1/4 of a bean to flavor 1k of pastry cream, which then becomes enough filling for a cake that feeds upwards of 30. So per serving the amount of tonka is miniscule. Imagine how many slices of cake you’d have to eat to consume 30 tonka beans worth of coumarin!! But, tonka isn’t the only ingredient I eat or bake with that contains coumarin. Things like cinnamon, cherries, strawberries, black currants also contain coumarin. So for me, personally, and the baking I do for myself, I see no issue with using tonka. PERSONALLY, FOR ME, AND THE RESEARCH I’VE DONE ON THE TOPIC. Anyways, All of the research is based off of studies on rats and cows. I’m not a rat or a cow so…
But, this all brings me to, always always always do your own research when you come across a new ingredient. I’m begging. Even if you see someone you trust using the same ingredient. And do real research. Read multiple articles, don’t just google something and take the first article preview as fact. Look outside of the information in your country too. So, many other countries are totally lax on tonka bean use. This article from BBC was enough to sway me in to camp, “Yeah, I’m gonna use it”.
Okay tonka aside, let’s get into the cake!!