On cakes of another kind...

I remember, when I was little, my mother used to make these amazing ‘Rainbow Sandwiches’. She would take those big uncut loaves of bread and slice them lengthways horizontally to her preferred thickness and number. She would then have an array of different sandwich mixtures made which she would layer on in between slices and then carefully stack up the loaf, wrap it in damp cloth and put it in the fridge until it was time to serve it. Before which, she would decorate it with colourful vegetables and ketchup. It was always wonderfully moist and a treat to look at.

So the other day, when I had to make a quick contribution to the regular One-dish parties we have in the community, I figured I’d try my hand at it. Somehow, nobody really appreciates normal bite size sandwiches too much at these things, so I wanted to make this a little different from the norm. I remembered the rainbow loaves of my childhood, but uncut ones aren’t easy to come by. So after a little googling, I came up with a ‘Sandwich Cake’. Perhaps not as colourful, and though I did not decorate it as lavishly as some of the images I saw online, I still think it came out quite nice.

There are a whole lot of recipes for this online, so I won’t really dwell upon that. Instead, here are a few pointers that I thought were must.

The normal bread slice: Using stacks of normal square bread slices with their edges cut off and them stacked and arranged, you can just about create any shape or size you would like. However once filled, layered and arranged, you can’t move this monstrosity, so use the platter you will serve it in for one, and take precautions for spills.
The Overnight Factor: It’s a good idea to make this one day ahead, to let the moisture in the fillings soak into the bread. This will help keep it held together, and also help the flavor. Just like icing in a cake. It’s always good to give it the time to be absorbed. Also for big events, its always great to have some do-aheads, than all last minute things. :)

The Icing: For a grander look, I prefer smoothing a moist covering on top of the whole slab which has the consistency of ganache. It won’t stiffen up like the actual chocolate but would contribute a lovely base texture. Also, it will hold any extensive decoration items you might want to place on. Ingredients I used were whipped cream, Italian salad dressing, mustard, yogurt and mayonnaise.

While it is important that whatever you make takes good, I do believe that making it look good makes it taste even better.