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King kong
King kong: Lambayeque's giant layered biscuit filled with manjar blanco, pineapple sweet and peanut sweet
PeruvianNamed, the story goes, after the giant ape because of its size when the film reached Peru, the king kong is Lambayeque's proudest sweet: thick, crumbly biscuit layers stacked with manjar blanco, a sticky pineapple jam and a peanut fudge, then cut into heavy slabs. Shops in Lambayeque and Chiclayo sell them by the kilo in boxes, and travellers carry them home as gifts. It is very sweet, buttery and dense, so a slice goes a long way with black coffee. This home version makes the manjar blanco from condensed and evaporated milk to save hours, then turns half of it into the peanut layer. The usual mistake is overbaking the biscuit until it is hard; take it out as soon as the edges are pale gold, as it firms up while it cools. It is a project, so make the fillings first and let them cool. Chef's tip: wrap the finished king kong and leave it overnight before cutting; the layers settle and soften into each other.
- Total time
- 150 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 16
Ingredients
For the biscuit
For the manjar blanco and peanut layers
For the pineapple sweet
To finish
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What you'll need
Spices & pantry
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Method
0/11 doneStep 1: For the pineapple sweet, put 1 ⅓ lb pineapple, 7 oz sugar, 1 cinnamon stick and 3 cloves in a pan and cook over a medium heat, stirring often, until thick and jammy and a spoon drawn across the bottom leaves a clear line, 30–35 minutes. Remove the spices and cool.
35 minStep 2: For the manjar blanco, whisk 1 ¾ lb sweetened condensed milk and 1 ¾ cups evaporated milk in a heavy pan and cook over a medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a heatproof spatula, until thick, caramel-coloured and you can see the bottom of the pan for a second when you drag the spatula through, 25–30 minutes.
30 minStep 3: Spoon half of the manjar blanco into a bowl and stir in 4 oz roasted peanuts to make the peanut sweet. Leave both to cool completely.
Step 4: For the biscuit, mix 1 ⅛ lb plain flour, 1 tsp baking powder, ¼ tsp salt and 2 ⅛ oz icing sugar in a bowl. Rub in 9 oz butter with your fingertips until it looks like breadcrumbs.
Step 5: Add 4 egg yolks and ¼ cup evaporated milk and bring together into a soft dough without kneading. Divide into 4 equal pieces, flatten and chill for 20 minutes.
20 minStep 6: Heat the oven to 350°F (325°F fan). Roll each piece between sheets of baking paper into a 20 × 25 cm rectangle about 5 mm thick, and prick all over with a fork.
Step 7: Slide each sheet onto a baking tray and bake until just set and pale gold at the edges, 15–18 minutes. Bake in batches if needed and trim the edges straight while still warm.
18 minStep 8: Cool the biscuits completely on the trays; they are fragile while warm.
Step 9: Lay one biscuit on a board and spread with the plain manjar blanco. Top with a second biscuit and spread with the pineapple sweet.
Step 10: Add a third biscuit, spread with the peanut sweet and finish with the last biscuit, pressing gently so it sits flat.
Step 11: Wrap and leave in a cool place for at least 4 hours or overnight, then dust with 1 tbsp icing sugar if you like and cut into slabs with a serrated knife.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 480 kcal
- Protein
- 8 g
- Carbs
- 72 g
- Fat
- 19 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does king kong take?
- About 150 minutes in total: 60 minutes to prepare and 90 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 16 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
- What can I use instead of baking powder?
- ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda + ½ tsp cream of tartar per 1 tsp.
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