Verdens beste kake, or "world's best cake," is a Norwegian sponge cake with layers of meringue, almonds, and vanilla pudding, pastry cream, or custard.
Verdens Beste Kake
This blog has a long history of sharing international recipes in addition to Southern specialties. In that spirit, I'd like to share this lovely cake recipe from Norway today.
It comes from a new cookbook called The Unofficial Disney Parks EPCOT Cookbook. This cookbook contains a multitude of recipes inspired by the cuisine of the Disney theme park, from its international pavilions to its immensely popular seasonal festivals.
This recipe uses vanilla pudding as the filling, but you can also substitute vanilla custard or pastry cream if you prefer.
The fun thing about this cake is that it resists all efforts to be fussy. When you pile meringue on top of cake on top of pudding on top of cake , you get a heap of beautiful, approachable, whimsical deliciousness. That's the charm of verdens beste kake!
If you like recipes from Norway, be sure to try these Norwegian Almond Cookies, too!
Verdens Beste Kake
Verdens beste kake, or "world's best cake," is a Norwegian sponge cake with layers of meringue, almonds, and vanilla pudding, pastry cream, or custard.
Ingredients
- ¾ cup salted butter softened
- 2 cups granulated sugar divided
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 5 large eggs separated
- ⅓ cup whole milk
- 1 ¾ cups whole milk
- ½ cup sliced almonds
- 1 box instant vanilla pudding (3.4 ounce)
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a half baking sheet with parchment paper.
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In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter and 1 cup sugar. Add flour and baking powder. Mix to combine. Add egg yolks and ⅓ cup milk. Beat until well combined and smooth.
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Spread batter in a ½ inch-thick layer on prepared baking sheet in the shape of a rectangle. Do not go all the way to the sheet edges.
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In clean bowl of stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment, whish egg whites and remaining 1 cup sugar until stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes. Spread on top of cake batter and smooth with knife or offset spatula. Sprinkle almonds over one half (horizontal) of batter.
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Bake 35-45 minutes until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Allow to cool, about 30 minutes.
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In a medium bowl, mix together instant vanilla pudding and remaining 1 ¾ cups milk. Refrigerate 5 minutes to set.
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Cut cake in half along almond divide. Spread vanilla pudding over meringue half without almonds. Carefully lift other half of cake onto pudding, keeping meringue and almonds on top. Slice into 4 large pieces and serve.
Excerpted from The Unofficial Disney Parks EPCOT Cookbook by Ashley Craft. Copyright © 2022 by Ashley Craft. Photos by Harper Point Photography. Used by permission of the publisher. All rights reserved.
Have been looking for a good recipe for this, thank you!
It looks delicious, I must give it a try
Such a delicious cake. It is perfect for my sons birthday
Wow...that looks so yummy. It has like a vanilla mousse in it.
Those layers are so inviting! Man, I kind of felt craving for this just by looking at the picture! Awesome job!
Wow! This looks absolutely delicious. Plus the almond toppings make it enticing! Loved it!
Wow! This looks absolutely delicious and tasty! I would really love to try this recipe!
I very rarely see Norwegian dishes coming up, so I'd love to give this recipe a try, the cake looks delicious!
This sounds like a lovely cake. I've not had a cake with meringue and sponge before. I need to try this!!!
This recipe sounds delicious but I am very intrigued to learn more about the "Macaroni Ice Cream Sandwich" talked about on the cover of The Unofficial Disney Parks EPCOT Cookbook" Now that sounds interesting!
That looks so delicious and soft, I'd love to make it and have a bite. Thanks for sharing!
This sounds like a yummy cake to try. I’ll have to make it next week when I go to the grocery store for all of the ingredients.
Yum! The cake looks so tempting 😍 I can't wait to try this recipe!
Oh my goodness! I can only imagine how good this cake is! Must make it!
I have never had that cake before. But it has almonds and custard? I bet that is so good!
I have never had this kind of cake before. Sounds like a delicious dessert and a wonderful treat.
This looks like a iller cake for sure! I have pinned this recipe to some back to as I always love trying a new cake and this looks wonderful 😉