Valrie Davis
TEN BRAVE souls answered our call for the Wickedest Christmas Cake in the land. They wrote, emailed and faxed bragging about their toe-curling, to-die-for, blissfully sinful, heavenly creations.
"(It's) a slice of heaven you can't resist," said Jennifer Douglas, a professor at the Civil Aviation Authority, Kingston, in her email.
"I am the toughest critic of my baking, and I strive for perfection. Having tasted many different Christmas cakes and puddings over the years, I am positive that I make the wickedest Christmas cake in Jamaica," emailed Maxine Doreen Henry.
"The aroma alone will take you to ecstasy and back," bragged Sonia Alexander in her letter.
Well, as the saying goes, the proof of the pudding is in the eating, and eight of our 10 entrants came forth with their cakes, tantalising our panel of judges with gorgeous presentations, heavenly aroma, and mouth-watering creations.
PICKY, PICKY, PICKY
While our six judges admit that they can be wooed by a heavenly slice (or three) of real Jamaican fruit cake, they were not about to fall for pretty looks or a tempting aroma. No, siree, they were picky, picky, picky. At first sight some could tell from a slightly sunken middle or cracks at the amount of baking powder or the heat of the oven. A few swore that they could tell when the cake was baked in an electric oven.
So, in their relentless pursuit of Jamaican Christmas cake perfection, they tasted, sniffed, commented and passed judgement. The winner, Valrie Davis, a farmer from Mile Gully District, Cobbla, Manchester, was a hit from the get go. The judges were impressed by her presentation, a simply decorated cake, cake stand, Christmas napkins and disposable plates.
Still, when Davis, who arrived more than an hour early, declared that she knew she would win in the 'Want More Factor' category, our judges smiled politely. However, from the first bite (after Davis had left the room) the smiles disappeared to be replaced by moans of ... well ... ecstasy.
"This...this cake," said Star Editor Claire Clarke, when she could finally allow herself to speak, "was made with love. I don't know how to explain it, but you can taste the love."
Senior Gleaner Writer Barbara Ellington exclaimed: "This tastes like a good old-fashioned family recipe. Excellent yummy texture."
Davis got the thumbs up from five of the six judges, however, one judge was lukewarm, and came in with a score substantially below the others. "Taste a bit of all the ingredients, no one taste stands out. Needed more rum," wrote this judge in the comments section of her score sheet.
Maxine Doreen Henry, who scrambled to get her cake in at the last minute, was Davis' closest rival. She got top marks for flavour and texture, but lost points for Appearance/Presentation and the heavy rum taste.
"Good flavour, but too much rum, insufficient raising agent or too much heat causing the top to crack," commented Ellington.
