MealMap #82
Where does this dish come from?
Name reveals in 2 guesses
A small, bakery-made dessert shaped like a frog's head with its mouth gaping open: a sponge base with a jam centre, a mound of artificial cream on top, and the whole thing sealed in a thick coat of fondant icing — green originally and still the favourite, later also chocolate-brown and pink. Sheets of sponge are cut mechanically into shape, dipped in fondant, and the mouth is sliced open with a hot knife; two fondant eyes in a contrasting colour are pressed on by hand, and it is presented in a paper patty-pan. One family bakery has made it to an unchanged recipe since about 1923, when its founder is thought to have been inspired by fondant-covered petits fours seen on a trip abroad; it is so tied to its home state that it was formally listed as a heritage icon in 2001, and the name and shape are registered trademarks. Seasonal cousins appear as snowmen and Easter chicks.
- sponge cake
- jam
- artificial cream
- fondant icing
- green food colouring
- chocolate fondant
- pink fondant
1 / 2Photo: Bilby · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Modified