Burnt Sugar Sponge with Sticky Burnt Sugar Frosting

This was one gooey, sweet, soft and crumbly confection ... a total exercise in decadence ... and perseverance. I came across a recipe for a burnt sugar cake in an old Better Homes and Gardens cooking series from the 60's. Had to try it ... however, the cake was a disaster. Really. I followed the recipe to the letter ... against my better judgement, but you know how it is when you're dealing with an unfamiliar recipe? I figured I should stick to it. Surely, it would come out 'okay' and if it was 'meh', then I could play with it. Wrong, wrong, wrong. The cake stuck in the pan and was far too crumbly. It was impossible to go any further, so it got broken up and left on a plate for picking at without any frosting. I retreated to the couch and sipped a strong drink (a good single malt Scotch, to be exact!) ... fuming and thinking how to correct the recipe.

So, here's what I did ... I got out my pretty new cake plate for inspiration. I lined the clean cake pans with waxed paper to guard against sticking cake.

I mixed up a plain sponge and added the burnt sugar to the batter,  baked it to perfection, brushed the crumbs off the edges, and popped it on the cake plate.

While the cake cooled, I made a date filling ...

... and a fluffy cooked frosting ... that was a bit difficult to get to the right fluffy thickness ... whip, whip, whip, whip .....

I chopped walnuts for the cake's sides ... and toasted them.

Then, I frosted the heck out of that cake, glommed on the walnuts, and licked the frosting spoons.

After I got all the stickiness washed off my hands, shirt front, cheeks, et cetera, I took pictures, cut a piece of cake and continued the knoshfest ... I'm bad. I know it. No need to make note. Just shake your head in disgust ... or walk off in a huff and get yourself your own glass of single malt. Me? I'm headed for a glass of milk and another piece of burnt sugar cake ... Happy Mother's Day, everyone!