I've had the pleasure to work with some amazing people during my time in the Air Force, and some of them were amazing civilians! One of those amazing civilians used to work with me back in our vault and was one of the first people to follow my blog when I started it. On slow days, she'd help me think up new recipe ideas and create a business plan for my future bakery! However, one thing she had been begging me to make for almost a year is a Dominican cake. Between Covid, a deployment, and other crazy speedbumps, it took me forever to find the time to make it. I knew I had to take my time with this to do it justice - especially since I wanted to make it special for my civilian contractor friend. My replacement just happens to also be Dominican, so I had to make this cake before I left my position, or else I would never hear the end of it!
What is Dominican cake, you ask? According to my friend and the internet, a Dominican cake is a special occasion cake that's popular in the Dominican Republic that features a moist and airy cake, a meringue frosting, and a tropical filling like guava or pineapple. I looked at 7-10 different recipes to see which one made the most sense to me and to make sure I was making this correctly and pulled bits and pieces from all of them to create the final product. I will caveat by putting it out there that I am not nor is my family Dominican, and this is the first time I've ever made this cake. There are families and bakers who have spent generations mastering this cake and are the true artists when it comes to the traditional Bizcocho Domincano, so if you ever have the chance to go to a true Dominican bakery, try this treat in all its glory! Until then, I hope you try your hand at this cake that I put my own spin on... think Amish meets the beach...
Servings: 12-16
Prep Time: 30 min
Total Time: 1 hr 15 min
INGREDIENTS:
The Cake...
1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened
1 2/3 cups sugar
6 eggs - 3 whole and 3 separated (save egg whites for frosting)
1 lime, zested
1/3 cup orange juice
1 Tbsp vanilla
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 cup evaporated milk
The Meringue Frosting...
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
The whites of 4 eggs (the three from the cake's eggs plus one extra)
1 tsp vanilla
The Filling...
1 8oz can of pineapple jam/preserves
1/4 cup crushed pineapple (I used fresh)
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two 9-inch round cake pans and line the bottom of each with parchment paper.
Beat together butter and 1 2/3 cup sugar for about 5 minutes with a stand mixer.
With the mixer on medium speed, add 3 whole eggs and then 3 egg yolks, one at a time, allowing each addition to be incorporated before adding the next.
Add the lime zest, orange juice, and vanilla. Mix well.
With the mixer still on medium speed, slowly add the flour, baking powder, and salt.
Finally, add the evaporated milk and mix until combined and the batter is smooth.
Divide the batter evenly between the two cake pans and tap the pans on the counter to smooth them out and get rid of any air bubbles
Bake the cake for 25-30 minutes, taking care not to overbake. Allow cakes to cool in their pans for 10 minutes before removing the cakes from the pans and putting them in the refrigerator to finish cooling.
While the cakes are cooling, make the filling and the frosting.
For the filling, mix the pineapple jam with the crushed pineapple in a bowl.
For the frosting, stir 1 1/2 cups sugar and 1/2 cup water in a saucepan and cook over medium high heat. Once the sugar has dissolved, lower the heat to medium and simmer for about 7 minutes, stirring constantly. The sugar mixture will come to a soft boil and thicken. If the mixture comes to a rolling boil, reduce the heat and continue to stir. After the 7 minutes, remove from heat.
Using a wire whisk attachment on a stand mixture, beat 4 egg whites for 3 minutes on high. Slowly add the sugar and water mixture and beat for an additional 4 minutes.
Add the vanilla and mix again for 1 minute.
To assemble, level out the cakes if necessary. Place one of the cooled cakes on your serving platter. Pipe the meringue frosting in a circle around the top edge of that cake.
Spoon the filling in the center of the circle and spread to fill the circle. You will probably have a little filling left over.
Carefully center the other cake on top. Frost the cake with the rest of the frosting. Garnish with sprinkles and/or dried fruit. Enjoy!