Italian rum cake

Custard: bring the milk to a simmer in a large saucepan with two strips of lemon zest; it does not need to boil.

Whisk the egg yolks and sugar until light, frothy and doubled in volume; blend in the flour.

Drizzle in about half a cup of the simmering milk, then a ladle more, to temper the yolks so they do not curdle; pour the mixture into the saucepan.

Add the envelope of Italian vanilla powder (a vanilla bean pod could go in now; vanilla extract would go in at the end).

Cook over gentle heat 5 to 6 minutes, until thick and the flour and yolks are cooked out, without scorching the bottom.

Turn off the heat; stir in a pinch of salt and the vanilla.

Break 2 oz semi-sweet chocolate into small pieces in a bowl. Remove the lemon peel; strain the custard if anything scorched.

Pour half the custard over the chocolate and let it sit a minute to melt; keep the other half plain.

Cover the plain custard at once with plastic wrap touching the surface so no skin forms; whisk the chocolate custard smooth and cover the same way; refrigerate until completely cool.

Sponge: whip the 6 eggs, sugar and a little lemon zest for a few minutes to aerate them for lift.

Add the cake flour, salt and a splash of vanilla; incorporate without overmixing.

Grease only the bottom of a non-stick eight-inch springform pan, not the sides, so the rising cake holds onto the walls and does not fall; pour in the batter.

Bake at 350, without opening the door for at least 20 minutes, 35 to 40 minutes.

Turn the oven off, open the door slightly and leave the cake in 5 minutes, then take it out and cool completely.

Rum syrup: in a small saucepan bring water and granulated sugar to a simmer until the sugar melts; cool slightly, add a third of a cup of dark rum and set aside in a measuring cup to cool.

Run a sharp knife around the edge, release the springform and keep the pan; cut the cake into three equal layers.

Line the springform with two pieces of parchment paper to catch any leaking syrup and close it; return the bottom layer to the pan.

Soak the bottom layer edge to edge with rum syrup while the cake is room temperature or slightly warm; spread the chocolate custard evenly over it with a small spoon or offset spatula.

Add the middle layer, soak it with more syrup, spread the vanilla custard.

Soak the top layer on its underside, set it on, and pour the last of the syrup over the top.

Cover and rest in the fridge a minimum of a couple of hours, best overnight, up to 24 hours; no weight needed.

Whip heavy cream with powdered sugar toward stiff peaks; as it starts to thicken add 1 teaspoon instant vanilla pudding and whip until fully thick, to stabilise it.

Unmould the cake onto a serving platter; pipe a few rosettes' worth of cream into a piping bag and spread the rest over the top and sides with a spatula.

Pipe rosettes on top and set maraschino cherries, blotted on paper towel, around them.

Grate the leftover chocolate over the top with a coarse grater.

Press lightly toasted sliced almonds all around the sides, shaking off and repeating until covered; finish with a little more chocolate.