# What kind of cake is this?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-cake-is-this/744379
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [January 27, 2016, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-cake-is-this/744379 "2016-01-27T15:51:52Z")
**Posts on this page:** 5
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@amaguri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amaguri)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2016, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-cake-is-this/744379/1 "2016-01-27T15:51:52Z")
A local bakery makes a mango mousse that sits on top of a cake round with such an enjoyably odd texture, I want to try to recreate it.
It tastes kind of like pound cake, but the texture is entirely different. It’s quite dense and crumbly with a VERY coarse crumb, but it’s not at all dry. It is not like any other cake I’ve had!
Any ideas?
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### Author:  [@cher3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cher3)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2016, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-cake-is-this/744379/2 "2016-01-27T16:49:04Z")
Could it be a cornmeal cake? There are various recipes to be found, with fruit toppings.
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### Author:  [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)
#### Post date: [January 27, 2016, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-cake-is-this/744379/3 "2016-01-27T18:06:59Z")
I have a coworker who brings in a cake sometimes that sounds like what you describe. It is very tasty and is kind of almost like a cross between cake and a rice crispy treat (at least in texture). When I have asked what kind it is, all he could say is “It’s a Russian cake.”
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### Author:  [@quiltguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/quiltguy)
#### Post date: [January 28, 2016, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-cake-is-this/744379/4 "2016-01-28T00:58:53Z")
> [@amaguri](#):
>
> A local bakery makes a mango mousse that sits on top of a cake round with such an enjoyably odd texture, I want to try to recreate it.
>
> It tastes kind of like pound cake, but the texture is entirely different. It’s quite dense and crumbly with a VERY coarse crumb, but it’s not at all dry. It is not like any other cake I’ve had!
>
> Any ideas?
Try a recipe for the cake part of pineapple upside-down cake. The cake is usually very coarse crumbed, and a bit on the dry side, all the better to allow it to soak up all that fruity, sugary goodness.
Substituting cornstarch for a small portion of the flour called for in a cake recipe will make it crumblier, since cornstarch adds no gluten to “toughen” the resulting cake. A low-protein pastry flour will do the same.
Now if that mango mousse was raspberry, I’d be standing in line myself. 🙂
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### Author:  [@snuffleupagus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snuffleupagus)
#### Post date: [January 31, 2016, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-kind-of-cake-is-this/744379/5 "2016-01-31T22:24:43Z")
Maybe you could ask the bakery what type of cake it is? They probably wouldn’t give you the recipe (although you could ask), but if they just told you what that type of cake is called, you would at least have a starting point for googling recipes.