Island Breeze Rum Cake Recipe Tips: Flipping and Filling Tricks

[Kathytnt]

Anyone have any tips for this recipe - I am a little worried about how thin the cakes are to flip them over for filling and decorating. Wish I had two cake racks to do it like they do on the video.

I found some mangoes - I do not have a serrated peeler and havn't heard real good stuff about the new veggie peeler. Perhaps I should peel the fruit early as prep work.

 

[heat123]

Since I cannot "peel" mangos very well myself, I would definitely prep it first and have it almost all cut up if you have never done it before. But then again I now have the serrated peeler so I may it when I attempt this recipe. good luck!

 

[Kathytnt]

Don't have the seratted peeler - I hear it is great on kiwi. May just have to do my best and prep a little ahead

 

[chefann]

I love this recipe! Be careful, because the cakes are very moist and can split. If you have the Lift 'N Serve, use those to move them around. I also found that letting the layers sit out a couple of hours "cooling" firmed them up, but they were still moist inside.If you are careful, you can use a knife to peel the mango. The green santoku is great for that! And you can peel a kiwi with a spoon (cut off the ends, insert a regular tablespoon under the skin, then rotate it). Use the Egg slicer to slice the kiwi- show another tool.

 

[heat123]

I cannot wait to try this one! I think I will make it for my next family function!

 

[Kathytnt]

Should I pre-cook the cakes so they are firmer for the show??? Unfrotunately I don't have the green santuko, the lift & serve etc. I guess it would not be the end of the world if they split - If so I could highly recomm
end the lift and serve

The guy at the store I worked out told me how important is to use a very sharp knife or it kind of shred the mango rather than a smooth cut - If also fails I actually found sliced mango in a can at Target

I hate not having certain tools but my house is only so big - I ws telling my hubby the benefits of being a director and I starting laughing when I realized he was thinking where am I going to put all those sample products

 

[pcheftammy]

If you are worried about the cakes, make them ahead of time and chill them. It makes them less fragile.

You can still flip the cakes out with one cooling rack. You just need to take your time doing it.

 

[Kathytnt]

I guess I could flip the first one out on a serving plate

 

[chefann]

Pre-cooking the cakes is a good idea.Another one that I shared at a meeting this week (I demoed this cake) was to toast the coconut for the top in the microwave in stoneware. Spread it out in a single layer and microwave on HIGH for a couple of minutes. If you don't have a turntable, take the stone out and shake around the coconut every 30 seconds or so.

 

[pamperedlinda]

the serrated peeler works very well on the mango. What I found difficult was once the cake was made and looking pretty - it was not so easy to slice. I think that maybe dicing the mango would make it a little easier to slice pieces of cake......might not look as pretty, but the slices might look a little better. I sort of mutilated mine when trying to slice - especially if you are trying to make thin slices.

 

[Kathytnt]

On the DVD it shows using the hold and slice to hole the fruit in place while you are cutting it ANy ideas on other fruit taht would be pretty to decorate the cake if mago wasn't available or people don't like mango or kiwi??? My sister thinks the cake is pretty but doesn't like rum

 

[PCGINA]

I think that maybe dicing the mango would make it a little easier to slice pieces of cake......might not look as pretty, but the slices might look a little better.

Linda I think this is a great alternative. My cake looked like a 4-wheel drive had gone through it after I cut, sliced, hunked, destroyed the first piece

I am not a real mango fan - so I think I am going to give papaya a try or pineapple. AND depending on the weather, the cost of this precious fruit is outrageous as well

 

[amcclanaghan]

My cake looked like a 4-wheel drive had gone through it after I cut, sliced, hunked, destroyed the first piece

Oh Whew!!! I thought I did something wrong!!! I'm glad mine wasn't the only one that didn't taketo being cut!

I baked the cakes a head of time, but the bottom layer didn't want to come all the way out so it looked bad... until I got the whipped cream piped on it. It LOOKED beatiful... until I cut it But it did taste pretty good.

 

[Chef Kearns]

This cake was sooo luscious! As far as your sister not wanting the Rum you can use Rum extract. That will make it non-alcoholic. You can also peel the Mango just like you would a Pineapple. Since you don't have the serrated peeler you can use your reg. Santuko knife or Chef's knife. Cut off the top and bottom so it won't roll on you, then slice from top to bottom taking off the peel. There are detailed instructions on doing this in the Season's Best (I think on page 31). The cake is so pretty when it is finished. I don't know why, but mine held up to being cut. I used real Rum, but I think Rum extract would be the way to go in the future. I would bake the cake and just eat that without any toppings. The cake is so moist and delicious!!

 

[chefbritt]

I would love to try out this recipe, but I don't have the EAD. Is there any way to do it without it?

 

[Kathytnt]

My sister doesn't like the tast of rum so the Rum extract won't work It will still taste like rum

Fortunately the store where I work had mangos 2 for $3

 

[speedychef]

I was thinking you could just use vanilla in the place of the rum...

 

[Chef Kearns]

Does she like the trifle? It is called the Island Breeze Rum Cake afterall.

 

[jenniferknapp]

My director tried making the cakes ahead of time for our cluster meeting.. and it came out bad! She used fresh pineapple, and now suggests using canned next time.

 

[pcheftammy]

I was thinking you could just use vanilla in the place of the rum...

In the cook's tip it does say that you could use rum flavoring instead of dark rum. I don't know if the vanilla will give it enough flavor. You could try an orange extract or substitue some concentrated orange juice for the simple syrup. Grand Marnier or Amaretto would be nice too. I don't know if you are trying to omit the alcohol or just the rum flavor. It's pretty much up to you. Can you tell the pastry chef is coming out of me?

 

[pmprdRN2]

On the DVD it shows using the hold and slice to hole the fruit in place while you are cutting it ANy ideas on other fruit taht would be pretty to decorate the cake if mago wasn't available or people don't like mango or kiwi??? My sister thinks the cake is pretty but doesn't like rum

I was doing some grocery shopping this weekend for the ingredients to make this cake for my "guinnea pig" coworkers to try on Monday. I searched darn near every grocery store in my area & NONE of them had any decent mangoes!! I couldn't even find mangoes in a can or jar!!! What I did find though was some papaya.

So here's what I'm going to try -- thin slices of papaya alternated with thin slices of pineapple as a ring around the outer portion of the cake top. For the inner middle portion of the cake, I'm going to layer the kiwi.....but then I thought I'd also try strategically placing a few slices of mandarin oranges too!!

I'll let ya'll know how it turns out once I finish it!

 

[Kathytnt]

Well the cake turned out good althought the mango was a bit hard in the middle. It is hard to cut though - It is so moist. I ended up making the cake at the show and it worked out fine. The fillings that are used in the EAD were not as pretty as the cards but that's cool

 

[chefann]

If you can't find mango (or it's exorbitantly expensive), use canned peaches instead.To help slice it neater, use the hold n' slice not through the cake, but as fingers holding up the cut edge while you slice. I use the Forged Bread Knife to cut this, too. It's sharper than the Slice n Serve, so it cuts it neater without mangling it.At my meeting Tuesday, I cut it into probably 30-35 pieces. They weren't gorgeous, but they didn't look like they were hacked off with a spoon, either.

 

[Kathytnt]

This recipe is making me realize how many products I don't have - I wul dlove htem all but no budget for it

You can also find sliced mango at a few places - I found it at Target

 

[kkimpinski]

My cake looked like a 4-wheel drive had gone through it after I cut, sliced, hunked, destroyed the first piece

lol...This is exactly what happened to me. It looked so pretty before I started cutting.

 

[Chef Diane]

ok this recipe sounds too hard (too much work) for me, I think Im going to stick with the trifle

 

[chefann]

ok this recipe sounds too hard (too much work) for me, I think Im going to stick with the trifle

It looks like it is a lot of work, but it really isn't. That was the comment I heard the most on Tuesday when I finished the demo at my meeting: "I never would have thought that it was that easy, just from reading the recipe."

Of course, the trifles are good, too!

 

[jmabner]

I tried this one tonight and held myself to a 45 minute time limit like I should at a show and it was tough. I did get it done in 44 minutes, and it looked....okay, but not gorgeous like the picture......but then I tried to cut it....it was a disaster....I even used the forged bread knife with no luck.....I was excited about doing this at all of my spring shows, but I think i will be doing something else, as this was definitely lack luster......

 

[pchefkristin]

Well, at least you all didnt forget to take the parchment off of the cake first! Hehe. Thats what I get for trying to talk on the phone and make that darn thing at the same time!

THANKFULLY, it was consumed by my team members at a cluster meeting last month, and everyone just peeled the parchment off the top.

 

[tlennhoff]

Well, at least you all didnt forget to take the parchment off of the cake first! Hehe. Thats what I get for trying to talk on the phone and make that darn thing at the same time!

THANKFULLY, it was consumed by my team members at a cluster meeting last month, and everyone just peeled the parchment off the top.

LOL, well if you ever do something like that as a show it is a great opportunity to point out how anyone can do the job even if they can't cook or are scatterbrained.