Porcupine Pie

Anyone else ever heard that little-known Neil Diamond hit? I thought not.

It was supposed to be a hedgehog but turned out eerily reminiscent of a porcupine, so porcupine it shall hereafter be known. But the best thing about it is the inside--it's not a regular cake, it's a zamboni cake. Or some other Italian z-word.


Zuccotto, maybe? Whatever. The recipe is as follows:

1 10-12 ounce pound cake (buy it or bake it)
1/4 cup hazelnut syrup (originally it called for brandy but I figured my kids didn't need any liquor)
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/3 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped
5 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped
3/4 cup finely chopped hazelnuts

Line a medium-sized bowl with plastic wrap. Slice the pound cake into 1/2-inch slices then cut the slices into triangles. Brush the hazelnut syrup on one side of the slices and line the bowl with them, syrup side in, piecing them together like a puzzle and trimming around the top edge of the bowl. It works well if you meet points together at the bottom of the bowl so they fan out a bit.

Whip the cream, sugar and vanilla together in a bowl until stiff peaks then fold in the chocolate pieces and nuts. Fill the bowl with the cream mixture and top with a final layer of pound cake pieces to seal the cake in. Cover top with plastic wrap.

Freeze for about five or six hours or until firm (or up to a week). When ready to serve, unmold cake on a plate and frost with your choice of frosting or dust with cocoa powder.

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