Australia Day is today, January 26th, so I thought I would branch out a little bit and make something to commemorate Australia's history - The Original Lamington Cake Recipe!

I've never actually had Lamingtons before, which is kind of odd, because apparently they're really popular in Cleveland, Ohio. I lived about an hour outside Cleveland for 4 years, but I don't recall having Lamingtons.

As of now, the first mention of Lamingtons appears to be in a 1902 edition of the Queenslander, an Australian newspaper. The recipe appears early in January, so I wonder if it was meant to be a holiday treat, or perhaps, as some have speculated, a way to use up stale cake - cake left over from the holidays, maybe?

The base of the traditional story goes something like this: Lord Lamington, the Governor of Queensland from 1896 - 1901, needed to feed some guests. In an effort to please these guests, Lamington's chef dipped some sponge cake in chocolate icing and then coated it in shredded coconut. Naturally, there are many variations to the story. One says that this occurred during a hot summer day, another says the cake was an accident, with the coconut sprinkled on top in an attempt to make it more appetizing. It's also possible that the cake was named after a place, not a person. This was common among baked goods (Shrewsbury cake and Yorkshire pudding, for example). A third theory claims that the cake was created by an influential cooking teacher from Brisbane, Amy Schauer.

Like most dishes, it's impossible to know exact specifics, but it is likely that the recipe was circulating before the 1902 publication. These things are often around for a while before they get written down and/or published.

Original Recipe:

Lamington Cake (from a Subscriber).

The weight of two eggs in butter, sugar, and flour, two eggs, half-teaspoonful baking powder.

Beat the butter to a cream, add the sugar and yolks of eggs, one by one, then the whites beaten stiff, lastly add gradually flour and baking powder. Bake in a moderate oven. When cold cut the cake like a sandwich and put the white mixture between, then cut into small pieces and cover on all sides with the chocolate mixture. Dip the cakes into grated cocoanut and put in a cool place.

The Mixture. - 2oz. butter, 6oz. icing sugar, beat to a cream, and divide equally in two basins, and to one half add one and a half teaspoonful cocoa (to be had in small tins) dissolved in three teaspoons boiling water. Beat well.

The Verdict:

Yum, yum, YUM! I can't believe I've never tried this before, these are delicious! This recipe is very rich though - the buttery taste is very strong. Which isn't really a surprise, considering the amount in the recipe. The cake was good on its own, which was a good sign for the final product. The only issue was that the icing recipe didn't make enough. Half of that was the perfect amount for filling the cakes (even though it didn't look like enough), but the other half wasn't near enough to coat all of the cakes. I also had to add extra water to loosen up both the filling and the icing. Overall, these were pretty easy to make, despite the dipping and coating taking some time. Because they were super tasty I give them five stars! I think Little Y loved them as well - she kept sneaking into the kitchen and grabbing them while I was dipping!

Modernized Recipe:

(Adapted from The Queenslander, Saturday January 4, 1902)

The weight of 2 eggs in BUTTER
The weight of 2 eggs in SUGAR
2 EGGS
The weight of 2 eggs in FLOUR
1/2 teaspoon BAKING POWDER

2 ounces UNSALTED BUTTER
6 ounces POWDERED SUGAR
1 1/2 teaspoons COCOA POWDER
3 teaspoons BOILING WATER

About 2 cups SHREDDED COCONUT

1. Weigh the two eggs to determine the amounts for sugar, butter, and flour. Mine were 4.20 ounces. Preheat the oven to 350F and grease an 8x8 square pan.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the egg yolks, one by one. Gently fold in the egg whites, whipped to stiff peaks.
3. Slowly stir in the flour and baking powder. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean and the edges are golden brown.
4. Make the filling and coating by beating together the butter and powdered sugar. add water if needed. Divide the mixture in half. In one half add the cocoa powder, dissolved in the boiling water. Add more water to the chocolate coating if needed, to make it dippable.
5. Let the cake cool completely, then turn out and slice in half horizontally like a sandwich. Add the plain filling to the cake and put both pieces together. Cut into small pieces, dip in the chocolate coating, then roll in shredded coconut. Let the cakes set somewhere cool.


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Sources

"Lamington." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 25 Jan. 2013. Web. 26 Jan. 2013. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lamington>.

Olver, Lynne. "Lamingtons." The Food Timeline. Web. 26 Jan. 2013. <http://www.foodtimeline.org/foodcakes.html>.

Stradley, Linda. "Lamington Cake - Lemmington Cake Lamington Cake Recipe - Lamington History." What's Cooking America. 2004. Web. 26 Jan. 2013. <http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/Lamington.htm>.

Four table-spoonfuls of sugar, 8 tablespoonfuls of desiccated cocoanut, and the whites of two eggs. Beat the whites of the eggs to a froth, add the sugar, and beat well again. Then stir in in the cocoanut.

Drop teaspoonfuls of this mixture on to a greased slide, and bake about 10 or 15 minutes in a moderate oven.

(A Parrot Card is awarded to Jean Douglas, Coast Road, Mirboo [?] North, Gippsland.)


The Verdict:

Not bad. I'm not a huge fan of coconut either, but I don't mind these. They did turn out pretty chewy, and I was hoping for more of a crunchy meringue, but still good (I realized as I was writing this up that I accidentally used half the amount of sugar. I didn't even notice, however, I wonder if that had anything to do with the texture.)! Perhaps they could benefit from a splash of vanilla, but otherwise they're fine as is. They're a great option for when you'd like a sweet treat but are lazy. It took minutes to whip these up and the great thing is that they don't spread, so you could probably even fit all of them on one baking sheet. They are best eaten the day of, because otherwise they tend to get sticky, even in this dry winter air.
Yield: 16 dainties

Modernized Recipe:

(Adapted from the Children's pages of The Argus, December 12, 1931, found at The Old Foodie)

2 EGG WHITES
4 tablespoons SUGAR
8 tablespoons DESICCATED COCONUT
1 teaspoon VANILLA EXTRACT (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until frothy. Add the sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Gently fold in the coconut.
3. Drop teaspoonfuls of the mixture on the prepared cookie sheet. Bake about 10 or 15 minutes until the tips become golden brown. Let cool and store in a well-sealed container.

The Verdict:
Mr.Man and I both liked this candy a lot! It had a really nice taste, from the honey I think. It was ridiculously easy too - I mean, three ingredients, come on! It was a little bit messy, but it only dirtied 2 dishes, a spoon, and a measuring cup, so that's okay. The candy was chewy when warm and hardened up when cool. So please, PLEASE do not bite these balls! Take it from me, it is not fun. These candies are for sucking on!

Modernized Recipe:

(Adapted from The Keeyuga Cookery Book, found in Possum Pie, Beetroot Beer And Lamingtons: Australian Family Recipes 1868-1950)

1/2 cup HONEY
1/2 cup BROWN SUGAR
1/4 cup UNSALTED BUTTER

1. Butter a plate or two, or use parchment paper.
2. In a small saucepan, melt together the honey, sugar, and butter. Boil for a few minutes, until it sets on a buttered plate. Let the candy cool for a few minutes and either scoop out and roll into balls or drop small amounts on the buttered plates, let cool, and roll into balls when you won't burn your hands. They will stay pliable for a while.
3. Let the balls cool and harden before eating.

Note: I found this also made nice toffee (when warm anyway, not sure how it would be when cool) and could be a caramel sauce if cooked less.