INGREDIENTS
4 large eggs separated, at room temperature 3 1/2 cups sifted cake flour 4 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature 2 cups granulated sugar divided 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract 1 cup milk at room temperature 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar 3 tbsp chopped Basil For the Lime Glaze: 2 cups of Powdered sugar sifted 4.5 tsbp Lime Juice more Lime Juice to dilute if needed For the Biscuit Crumbs: 200 g roughly 7.5 oz Honey graham Crackers, Crushed 4 tbsp Caster sugar 1 tbsp of Cocoa powder For the Custard: 2 cups of half and half Or half milk and half pouring cream 1 cup of milk 3 egg yolks 1/4 cup of sugar I prefer custard to not be too sweet - You can add more if you prefer 1.5 - 2 tbsp cornflour for a thick custard 2 tsp of vanilla or 1/2 vanilla bean
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C. 2. Line a 2 - 9x 11 jelly roll pan OR Line 3 x 8inch pans with parchment paper, and grease and flour it (if needed). 3. Separate the eggs, being careful not to get any yolk into the white. Cover the egg whites for later on in the recipe. 4. Sift the Flour, salt, and baking powder in a bowl. Stir through the Chopped Basil through the flour. 5. Beat the butter and about 1 1/2 cups of sugar on medium high until mix is fluffy . 6. Add the yolks one at a time. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and make sure it is all mixed well. 7. Add the vanilla and beat the mix again until combined. 8. With the mixer on low, add the flour and milk alternately in 3 additions, ending with the flour. 9. In a clean bowl whisk the eggwhites until foamy. Add the rest of the sugar (about 1/2 cup)and whisk the eggwhites until stiff peaks form. 10. Gently fold in about 1/4 of the egg white mix into the cake batter. Then fold in the rest of the egg whites until completely incorporated - be careful not to deflate the batter. 11. You can divide the batter equally into 3- 8inch pans or 2 -9x 11 inch pans. 12. Smoothen the top of the batter to make sure they are evenly spread. 13. Bake in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes for the round cake pans OR about 15 minutes in the 9x 11 pans - OR until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. 14. Cool the cake for about 10 minutes and turn out the cake onto a wire rack and cool it completely. 15. Rosie suggests putting the cakes (wrapped in plastic) in the fridge to make frosting easier. For the Faux Fish Fingers: 16. Once they are cooled and chilled I cut the browned edges of the cake and cut it into 1 inch strips and then again to 3 inch pieces. Yielding about 27 cake pieces. Assembly: Lime Glaze: 1. Mix the powdered sugar and Lime juice in a flat dish until there are no more lumps. 2. The glaze shouldn't be too thick. If it is thick add a tsp of lime juice at a time until desired consistency. Biscuit Crumbs: 1. Mix the crushed Graham Crackers, sugar and cocoa powder in a tray until well combined. Assembly: 1. With a spoon pour lime glaze over the Cake fingers (One at a time) until coated all over (As you would with an egg wash for fish fingers) 2. Transfer to the biscuit crums and press the crumbs into the cake until it is well coated all over. 3. Place on a wire rack till everything sets. 4. Chill until ready to serve. Custard: 1. In a medium saucepan, heat the milk and half and half with the sugar. Make sure the sugar dissolves. 2. In a small bowl whisk the egg yolks, vanilla and cornflour until pale and smooth. 3. When the milk is steaming, lower the heat (to low). 4. Add about 1/4 a cup of the steaming milk in a thin stream to the egg yolk mix while whisking to temper the egg yolk. Add about another 1/4 cup of milk to bring the heat of the yolk up. 5. Add the egg yolk mix in to the milk mix and whisk constantly while heating up the mix till it thickens to desired consistency. 6. After custard has thickened, place a plastic wrap along the surface of the custard to prevent a film forming on the surface. Cool to room temparature and transfer to the fridge to cool for a few hours. 7. Serve along side the Vanilla Basil & Lime Cake "Fish Fingers."