Save the <i> Blotkake</i>

Drifts of whipped cream make Norwegian blotkake as snowy as a white Christmas. This stunning cake appears at any important occasion, from Norwegian independence day May 17 to year-end festivities.

Blotkake is so significant that the Sons of Norway, a national organization headquartered in Minneapolis, encourages members to make it. The Sons operates a cultural skills program that includes a unit on traditional cooking. Working like Scouts earning badges, participants progress from general cooking to meat and fish dishes and baked goods and desserts.

According to the baking guidelines, Norwegian custom is to serve seven kinds of baked goods at Christmas and other holidays. Blotkake would be one of these. And sure enough, there it was at this year’s julebasar (Christmas bazaar) at the Norwegian Seamen’s Church in San Pedro.

After purchasing Christmas wares from Scandinavia, shoppers lined up at a buffet that started with yellow pea soup, moved on to smorbrod (open-face sandwiches) and wound up with blotkake and kaffe (coffee).

The luscious blotkake was layered with apricot puree and whipped cream, topped with more whipped cream and decorated with kiwi. Liv Nilsen, a church hostess who made the cake, says in Norway she would use cloudberries at this time of year. But blotkake adapts to whatever is available. The only requisites are whipped cream and fruit of some sort. Even bananas and canned fruit cocktail will do.

Nilsen remembers eating blotkake at Christmas in Farsund in southern Norway. The family dinner centered around freshly caught cod with a rich sauce of butter, egg yolks and cream. There were also vegetables, hard lefse (bread), red wine and rice porridge fluffed up with whipped cream. The red sauce for the pudding was made with strawberries picked in summer and frozen. After this came Christmas cookies and blotkake.

In Norway, the main Christmas celebration is Dec. 24. The night of the 23rd, rice porridge is set out for Santa’s helpers, who show their appreciation by leaving stockings filled with small gifts for the children. Nilsen remembers getting treats like chocolate, tangerines and apples, a small doll or coloring book. “This was a little something to keep us quiet in the morning,” she says. Parents were then free to work on the main festivities.

Here is Nilsen’s recipe for blotkake. Although the cake sounds fragile with its billows of whipped cream, it can be stored overnight in the refrigerator, emerging mellow and moist the next day. In this recipe, be sure to use potato flour, which is available in health food stores, and not potato starch.

LIV NILSEN’S BLOTKAKE

5 eggs

Sugar

1 3/4 cups cake flour

1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon potato flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

Margarine

3 cups whipping cream

1 (16-ounce) can apricots

Sliced kiwi

Raspberries or other berries

In electric mixer, beat eggs with 1 scant cup sugar 20 to 25 minutes, until very light. Meanwhile, sift cake flour, potato flour and baking powder together in mixing bowl 5 times. Then sift 1 more time into beaten egg mixture. Fold in gently with spatula, cutting to bottom of bowl to mix thoroughly.

Grease 10-inch deep round cake pan with non-stick cooking spray or melted margarine. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees 35 to 40 minutes, until tester comes out clean. Do not open oven door before 35 minutes. Turn off heat and leave cake in oven with door open 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven and invert in pan onto cooling rack. Let stand until completely cooled, then remove from pan.

With sharp knife, cut cake horizontally into 3 layers. Sprinkle 2 layers with fluid cream until moist. Whip remaining cream with 1/4 cup sugar, or more to taste, until stiff. Drain apricots thoroughly. Puree in food processor or blender. Place 1 moistened cake layer on platter. Spread with apricot puree and cover with whipped cream. Place second moistened layer on top. Spread with apricot puree and cover with whipped cream. Place remaining layer on top. Cover cake with most of remaining whipped cream, leaving some for decoration. Pipe reserved cream on in puffs or other design. Decorate with kiwi slices and raspberries. Makes 12 servings.

Each serving contains about:

430 calories; 124 mg sodium; 171 mg cholesterol; 25 grams fat; 48 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams protein; 0.32 gram fiber.