Segovia punch

Ingredients

Ingredients for 4 people: Sponge cake: 6 egg yolks 3 egg whites. 3 tbsp of cornflower. Syrup: 2 cups of sugar. 2 cups of water. Lemon rind. Coating: 3 egg yolks. 1 egg white. 1/2 dl of water. 125 g of sugar. Marzipan: 250 g of ground almonds. 250 g of icing sugar. A few tbsp of water. 1 egg white.

Preparation

Segovia punch is a traditional dessert based on a sponge cake bathed and coated in marzipan. For the sponge cake: Beat the 6 egg yolks and the 3 egg whites in a food mixer for 15 minutes. Reduce the speed of the mixer and carefully add the cornflour. Grease and line the base of of rectangular baking tin measuring 35 cm by 20 cm. Pour in the mixture and cook in the oven in bain-marie for 15 minutes. Covering for the sponge cake: Prepare a syrup dissolving the sugar in the water in a small saucepan, add the lemon rind and cook for 15 minutes. Bathe the sponge cake with the syrup. For the coating: Make slightly stringy syrup with the sugar and the half dl of water. Beat the egg yolks in a thick-bottomed saucepan, add the syrup and place over the flame stirring continuously until it thickens. Cut the sponge cake in half, placing one part over the other so that it appears taller and cover it with the coating. For the marzipan coating: Knead the icing sugar and the egg white. Work it like dough, using icing sugar instead of flour. If necessary, add a little water to help. Roll the dough (½ cm thick) and cover the cake, trimming excess edges.

Presentation

Sprinkle with icing sugar and burn with a red-hot iron. Serve very cold and if possible accompanied by a small glass of herb liquor.