Pandan drømmekage

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F conventional (180°C/350°F fan-forced). Use a pastry brush to brush the bottom and side of a 23 cm (9 inch) square or round cake tin with melted butter and line the bottom with baking paper.
2. For the pandan juice, wash and cut the pandan leaves to about 2.5 cm (1 inch) long pieces and blend with the water. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve or cheesecloth. Always stir the pandan juice before using, as it tends to have sediment.
3. For the cake, sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a medium bowl. In a separate medium bowl, mix the pandan juice, coconut cream and pandan essence.
4. In a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whisk the eggs and sugar on medium speed until pale yellow. Turn the speed to low and gradually add the vegetable oil until emulsified. Gently fold in the flour mixture, alternating with the pandan juice mixture, until just combined.
5. Pour into the prepared tin and bake for 45 minutes, or until a wooden skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean.
6. Prepare the coconut topping while the cake is baking. Melt the butter with the dark brown sugar, gula Melaka and milk in a medium saucepan over low heat until the sugar is just dissolved. Fold in the salt and desiccated and shredded coconut and stir until the coconut is completely coated. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool slightly.
7. Once the cake is cooked, spoon the coconut mixture over the top and spread out evenly. Bake for a further 10–15 minutes, until the coconut is toasted and crisp. Cool in the tin for 30 minutes before cutting and serving.

• As a tourist to the Freetown Christiania commune in Copenhagen, I came across the drømmekage, which translates literally to ‘dream cake’. Traditionally, this Danish cake is a fluffy vanilla sponge topped with sweet, sticky caramelised coconut. At Raya, we of course put our Malaysian twist on this cake, replacing the vanilla with freshly squeezed pandan juice and making the caramelised coconut with palm sugar. We hope the Danes approve.
• For making pandan juice, the preferred ratio of pandan leaves to water is 1:1. To be on the safe side, the quantity in the ingredients list makes a little more than you will need.