Saturday, September 12, 2015

Rainbow Cake in Singapore, Rainbow Cocktails in London, or make your own cake and juices

Rainbow cake, Singapore.
More details of restaurant and recipe later. It's in the HillV2 complex ground floor.


This is a great treat for a holiday, birthday or special occasion. Also a centrepiece for a party.
I forgot the name of the restaurant where I saw this cake. Fortunately, as usual I had taken the photo of the food with a copy of the menu (or name card) as a reminder. Dean and Deluca, in HillV2, 4 Hillview Rise, Singapore.

Here's a guide to rainbow cakes all over Singapore, with the warning that some places sell out early in the day. (Don't they have a chef on site who makes another when the cake is three quarters sold out? Don't they have a second cake in the freezer which can be brought out?)

http://www.ladyironchef.com/2014/01/rainbow-cake-cafe-singapore/
Want to make it yourself?
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/3028705/rainbow-cake

I am keen on natural colours and different flavours. Why would anybody recommend food colouring? The BBC's trouble-shooting or FAQ site warns cooks that natural colours might fade during cooking. But too much food colouring can give an unpleasant flavour. Back to natural ingredients. In summer with fresh fruits abundant and cheap, a good time to make juices and flavoured cakes.

English Summer Pudding - red fruit
In England in summer many restaurants will be offering summer pudding, encased in a simple white bread outside, contrasting with the most, succulent strongly flavoured centre filling of red summer fruits such as red currants, raspberries, strawberries and blackcurrants. You could make a two or three decker summer pudding with two or three contrasting colours, red fruits, green kiwi, and another.

Australian and New Zealand Pavlova - Rainbow effect
Australia and New Zealand have as their national dish the Pavlova, a meringue with a high bowl ending and mixed fruits in the centre. At home or for a party you could create a rainbow effect in the middle simply with contrasting colours of fruits, cut into circles or semicircles, laid in lines. If you want a hotel or catering company to do a summer dessert for a party or wedding, you could ask them to create a rainbow effect Pavlova.

Another version would have concentric circles, perhaps with strawberries around the outside of the meringue. At home, or for a charity event, even a small child could create the pattern, if an adult washed and cut the fruit, and ensured the child washed their hands!

Rainbow Cake
Singapore's rainbow cake is dense, not light like a Victoria sponge, because you want the layers to hold their shape.
Good. I've always been disappointed by sponge cakes which disappear in the mouth like Candy Floss (one of the great culinary disappointments of my childhood. I must admit to liking solid foods such as suet pudding).
http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/how-make-our-rainbow-cake-frequently-asked-questions

Contrasting Colour Cocktails
In London you can get rainbow cocktails at a Chinese restaurant in Harrow. The price of the cocktail was as much as or more than our main dish, but the highlight of the meal.

I first saw these made at a French wedding (our au pair girl Caroline nee Jouy, married name Mention. I've hunted for her all over the net). The colours settle due to the different density but you simply have to pour them in the correct order.

http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Make-Rainbow-Shots/

One recipe suggests 1/4 oz of each of
Creme de Cacao,
Creme de Violette,
Yellow Chartreuse,
Maraschino,
Benedictine,
Green Chartreuse and finally
Brandy.

Seven ingredients. If you have a well-stocked cabinet you probably have two or three already. If you don't have all the ingredients, you could make yourself a Christmas list and ask each member of the family to buy you one of the ingredients (or all buy a bottle for each other).

A simple sandwich drink of three contrasting colours could be equally amusing. (Nobody actually wants to drink all these different flavours. In my experience it's just a muddle and too much alcohol. You just want to see it.)

There's some simple scientific way of finding out which order to use the drinks you already have by looking up the number. Anybody in your family with a scientific or methodical mind could do it.
An alternative version

Rainbow Juices in Contrasting Colours
You don't like alcohol? You are driving? You want non-alcoholic drinks for health freaks or a children's party, or drivers early in the day?

You also find a mixed fruit juice will separate out into contrasting colours. This happened to my juices at The Tanglin club Tavern restaurant in Singapore.

Or just make a selection of teeny tumblers or throwaway plastic cups with juices of three different colours different colours. I saw this done at the Grove Hotel north of Watford for a Jaguar car test drive organised by Spire. Orange from oranges and carrots. Green from kiwi fruit. Red from watermelon or mixed red fruits.

Can't be bothered to make your own juices? Want a detox? Health food shops and internet suppliers can provide bottled juices. Here's just one of several I found on the net, from the USA.
http://www.rainbowjuices.com

If you are in Singapore, one of the delights is that most shopping malls in buildings with multi-storey shops have a food court in the basement or on the top storey, or both, with at least one juice bar serving juices.

Kiosks serving juices is also becoming a trend in shopping malls in London, England. You will find them in suburbs such as Harrow and Watford, as well as the big, famous malls. If you are planning a shopping trip, most shopping malls have websites so you can check the names of the restaurants and juice bars. Then check the outlet websites for their food, drinks and prices.

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author, speaker.


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