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Paan Gulkand Ice Cream Cake

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Ingredients
  

For the genoise

  • 4 eggs
  • ½ cup sugar
  • ¾ cup all purpose flour

For the filling

  • ¼ cup pistachios, finely chopped
  • 500 g pure vanilla ice cream
  • ½ cup sour cream
  • 1 teaspoon lightly toasted and crushed fennel seeds
  • Crushed dried rose petals, if available

For the topping

  • 3-4 fresh betel leaves
  • ¼ cup gulkand (see recipe notes)
  • ¼ cup lightly toasted slivered almonds
  • 1 teaspoon lightly toasted and crushed fennel seeds
  • 1 teaspoon supari or sweetened areca nut bits
  • Crushed dried rose petals, if available
  • Vark or silver leaf, if available

For soaking the cake/assembly

  • ¼ cup honey liqueur (optional)
  • ¼ cup Pernod or anise-flavored liqueur (optio)nal
  • ½ cup rose water

Instructions
 

Make the genoise:

  • Preheat your oven to 425F/220C. Line 2 round 9" baking pans with parchment; grease and flour the parchment.
  • Note: you'll need a springform pan to assemble the cake, so use whatever size baking pans are the same as your springform.
  • In a large heatproof bowl, whisk together 4 eggs with 1/2 cup sugar until combined. (If you have a stand mixer, use its bowl so the next whipping step is easier).
  • Set this atop a saucepan with an inch or so of simmering water (make sure the bowl's bottom isn't touching the hot water). Continue whisking until the egg mixture feels on the hotter side of warm.
  • Take the bowl off the heat. Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer, continue whipping on high speed for about 5 minutes, or until the mix turns a pale yellow, has doubled (or more) in volume, and the batter falls in thick ribbons which hold shape for about 3-4 seconds.
  • Very gently fold in 3/4 cup of sifted flour. Pour into your prepped pan and bake for about 15 minutes, or until the cake is golden and springy. You want this slightly on the drier side, but still moist. Test by touching the top: if your finger sticks, leave it to bake a minute or two longer (use the top burner only on reduced heat, if you like, but with care as that might cause the cake top to burn). If the cake top seems dry, then stop and remove from the oven.
  • Run a knife around the edges of each pan to loosen and allow to cool in the pan, and then invert onto a baking rack and peel off the parchment to cool completely.
  • Slice each cake with a bread knife into two layers, for a total of 4. Don't worry if these are thin or a little shaggy looking.

Make the filling

  • Mix all filling ingredients together until well combined. Return to the freezer until you’re ready to assemble the cake

Make the topping

  • Note: Do this only when you’re close to serving the cake.
  • Stack the betel leaves, fold them if need be, and roll them into a tight “cigar”. Then slice this finely to get betel leaf strips.
  • Combine this with all other topping ingredients.

Assembly

  • Divide the ice cream filling into 4 roughly equal portions. Spread one of these on the base of a springform pan. You want a wee bit more ice cream on the first layer that goes in. Later layers can be thinner.
  • Quickly follow with a layer of genoise. Drizzle a little of the liqueur+rose water mixture over the cake layer
  • Follow again with ice cream filling; don’t worry if it’s runny or thin. Alternate cake (+ liqueur-rose water) and ice cream filling with all remaining layers–ending with a layer of the genoise, ideally a bottom half, placed on top of the last ice cream layer bottom up.
  • Cover with foil and rest the whole cake in the freezer to set for 4 hours or overnight.
  • When you’re ready to serve the cake, remove the sides of the springform pan and invert it onto a serving plate. Gently remove the base of the springform pan.
  • Spread the topping evenly over the cake, which might need to be set out for just a little while to soften before you slice and serve.

Notes

Gulkand, betel leaves, supari are all ingredients that should be available at local Indian grocers. If not, you can make your own gulkand by layering shredded damask rose petals (or any other organic, pink fragrant variety like tea roses) with sugar in a sterilized jar, topping with a little honey, and resting this in as much sunlight as it will get for 3-4 days.