Calineta

Ingredients

• 750 g sugar
• 12 whole eggs
• 200 g ground almonds
• 500 g flour
• to taste butter
• variable simple syrup (almíbar) at soft-ball stage
• a splash sherry
• to taste custard or egg cream (huevos moles)
• to taste meringue
• to taste bonbons
• to taste candied fruit

Instructions

1. Beat the sugar with ten egg yolks (reserve the two egg whites) until well combined. Work the mixture thoroughly, then fold in the ground almonds. Mix well, then add the flour and combine everything evenly.
2. Grease two round molds of different sizes with butter. Divide the batter between them and bake in a gentle oven until set. Let cool completely.
3. Once cooled, slice each sponge cake in half horizontally, creating four round cakes instead of two.
4. Prepare a simple syrup at soft-ball stage with a splash of sherry. Soak the sponge cakes with this syrup until absorbed.
5. Fill each cake layer with custard or egg cream (huevos moles), pairing the two cakes of equal size together. Stack them to form two layers, with the smaller cake on top.
6. Decorate the assembled calineta with meringue, bonbons, and candied fruit.