By ALMA WENDY YU

A birthday isn’t a birthday without a cake. From the simplest birthday celebrations to the grandiose ones, a decorated sweet sponge is the center of attraction, a tradition that started many centuries ago. Birthday cakes have evolved over the years—more layers are added for height, more designs wrap the plain sponge to enhance cake aesthetics, and different flavors are used on the base sponge for a unique taste. Earlier in my childhood up to my teens, my family would give me a cake every year but I would skip it in favor a pan of lasagna or birthday noodles. I fall into that small percentage of the general population who isn’t fond of cakes.

If I do not eat cakes for birthdays, what do I get instead? My family easily picked up on my disinterest in birthday cakes and would get me an ice cream cake instead. But that doesn’t look as celebratory as a traditional birthday cake. To spare them the problem of deciding what to get for me, I made a “cake” that I would surely eat to the last “crumb.” For the sponge, I made three layers of meatloaf mixture, decorated it with cheesy mashed potatoes, and a flavorful gravy to go with it. It looks like a cake at first glance, but it’s really a play on meatloaf and potatoes.

Meatloaf

Ingredients:
(for three six-inch rounds)
600g ground pork
600g ground beef
100g fresh breadcrumbs (or pulverized
Japanese breadcrumbs)
1 egg
1 tbsp. Italian seasoning
1 tbsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp. onion powder
2 tsp. paprika
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper

Method:
1. Pre-heat oven to 180C.
2. Mix all ingredients for meat mixture in a bowl. To taste, cook  small piece of the mixture. Season as needed.
3. Divide the mixture into three equal parts, and flatten evenly into a six-inch round cake pan. The mixture might be too thick but take note that it would shrink as it cooks.
4. Bake for about 30 minutes or until cooked through.
5. Remove meat from pans and set aside.
6. Check if they are of the same size. Trim a few edges if needed.

Meatloaf gravy

Ingredients:
100g butter, melted
100g flour
1 liter beef stock (store-bought)
Salt and pepper
Dried parsley

Method:
1. Melt butter in a pan.
2. Add flour and mix well with a whisk. The mixture will clump up.
3. Whisk in the stock in batches, mixing it well until smooth before adding the next batch. Bring it to a simmer for a few minutes to remove the raw taste of the flour.
4. Season with salt and pepper. This will depend on how salty the store- bought stock is.

5. Add dried parsley for color.

Cheesy Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients:
(This is good for 10 servings, you may have extra potatoes that you can serve on the side)
1.5 kg potatoes, peeled, washed, and cut into same-size chunks
250g all-purpose cream
100g cheddar cheese, grated Salt and pepper to taste

Method:
1. In a pot, place peeled and cut potatoes. Fill with water until all potatoes are submerged. Add one tablespoon of salt into the water and bring it to a boil. Cook until potatoes are soft.
2. Drain the water and mash the potatoes while they are still hot.
3. Heat up cream in a separate pot until bubbles form on the side. Once hot, pour into the mashed potatoes and mix well.
4. Add the grated cheese. The potatoes must be a bit firm so they can be piped easily onto the meatloaf.
5. Season the potatoes with salt and pepper.

To assemble “cake”:
1. Use a cake turntable if you have one. Place a dollop of mashed potatoes on the bottom of the cake’s serving plate. Place one round of meatloaf on top. Press down and make sure it is stable. Add another layer of mashed potatoes on top of the meatloaf, and top with another round of meatloaf. Repeat until you have three layers of meatloaf with mashed potatoes in between.
2. Place a thin layer of mashed potatoes all over to cover the three layers. In cake terms, this is called a “crumb coat.” This will cover up the brown bits of the meat once you start piping your mashed potatoes. The end result will be neater.
3. Place remaining potatoes on a piping bag attached with a star tip. For my design, I used the basket-weave pattern. It’s great to cover up the small bumps and irregularities of the meatloaf. You have the option to choose whatever design you want.
4. Slice like you would a cake, and drizzle the gravy on it. Now I can “have my cake and eat it too,” literally.

Images from Freepik