Apparently this cake was popularized by the in-house bakery of the I. Magnin department store in the 70s in San Francisco. The cake has a wonderful lemony flavor that pairs nicely with the lightly-coffee-flavored whipped cream between the layers and surrounding the cake. The “crunch” comes from crushed coffee-flavored “seafoam” candy pieces covering the outside.
Interestingly, I’ve been trying to perfect a version of seafoam candy (without coffee flavoring). So it was fun to see it in this cookbook and to try it on a “real” recipe. It came out pretty good but I have some ideas on how to make the candy airier.
This cake IS really tasty, but it’s meant to be consumed quickly. After sitting in the refrigerator over night, the candy started to melt a little into the whipped cream. By day two, there was no crunch left to the exterior. Just pockets of coffee caramel blobs. So eat it quick!