Lamingtons

Before you start

Lamingtons are squares of plain butter sponge coated all over in a thin chocolate icing and rolled in desiccated coconut. They are a fixture of Australian bake sales and afternoon tea. The coating should be a fine shell that soaks a millimeter or two into the cake, not a thick frosting.

The practical secret is cold, day-old cake. Fresh sponge crumbles the moment it hits warm icing, while chilled sponge holds its edges and absorbs just enough. The icing has to be thin enough to coat in a single dip; keep it warm over a pan of hot water so it does not thicken as you work. Set up a production line with forks, the icing bowl, the coconut tray and a rack before you start.

Ingredients

• Sponge225 g (1¾ cups plus 2 tbsp) all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp fine salt
• 115 g (½ cup) unsalted butter — softened
• 200 g (1 cup) caster or granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs — room temperature
• 160 ml (⅔ cup) whole milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• Chocolate icing450 g (about 3¾ cups) powdered sugar — sifted
• 30 g (⅓ cup) unsweetened cocoa powder
• 30 g (2 tbsp) unsalted butter
• 160 ml (⅔ cup) boiling water or hot milk
• Coating200 g (about 2½ cups) desiccated (finely shredded unsweetened) coconut

Method

1. Heat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Grease the pan and line it with parchment, leaving an overhang on the long sides. Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt.
2. Beat the butter and sugar for 3 to 4 minutes, until pale and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then the vanilla.
3. Add the flour in three parts alternating with the milk in two, mixing on low just until smooth after each addition.
4. Spread the batter evenly and bake for 24 to 28 minutes, until lightly golden and a toothpick in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, lift out and cool fully on a rack.
5. Wrap the cooled cake and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or overnight. Trim the browned edges and cut into 24 squares, 4 rows by 6.
6. Make the icing in a heatproof bowl: whisk the powdered sugar and cocoa, add the butter and boiling water and whisk smooth. Set the bowl over a pan of barely simmering water. It should run off a spoon like thin cream; add hot water a teaspoon at a time if it thickens.
7. Spread the coconut in a tray. Drop one square into the icing, turn it with two forks to coat every side, lift and let the excess drip for a few seconds, then roll it in coconut. Set it on the rack.
8. Repeat with the remaining squares, refreshing the coconut tray when it clumps with icing. Leave the lamingtons for 30 minutes to set.

Tips for success

• Use one fork for icing and keep your fingers dry for the coconut. Wet, chocolatey fingers turn the coconut into a paste quickly.
• Put only a third of the coconut in the tray at a time and top it up with fresh coconut; it stays fluffy and coats better.
• If squares start to crumble, return the rest of the cake to the freezer for 15 minutes before continuing.

Substitutions

Desiccated coconut

Sweetened shredded coconut works but is coarser, sweeter and patchier; pulse it briefly in a food processor first.

Butter sponge

A store-bought pound cake, chilled and cubed, makes a denser, richer lamington with less soaking.

Water in the icing

Hot milk gives a slightly creamier, softer-set coating; boiling water sets a little firmer and keeps longer at room temperature.

Variations

Jam-filled lamingtons

Split each chilled square horizontally, spread a thin layer of raspberry jam, sandwich and then dip as usual.

Pink lamingtons

Coat in raspberry gelatin made with half the usual water and chilled until syrupy instead of the chocolate icing.

Troubleshooting

Cake falls apart in the icing

The sponge was too fresh or warm. Chill it thoroughly, or bake it a day ahead, and work quickly so each piece spends only a few seconds in the icing.

Coating is thick and patchy

The icing cooled and thickened. Keep it over hot water and thin with hot water until it flows freely off a spoon.

Squares are soggy

They sat in the icing too long or the icing was too thin. Dip, turn and lift in about 5 seconds, and let excess drip off before rolling.

Storage

Keep lamingtons in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. They freeze well for up to 2 months; thaw in the container so condensation does not soften the coconut.

Safety notes

Do not taste the raw batter, which contains raw flour and egg. Contains wheat, egg and milk; coconut is a tree-nut labeling item in the U.S.