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United States

Sans Rival

This Filipino layered dessert has cross-cultural roots, derived from French-style baking techniques. The name of the cake—sometimes written “sansrival,”—means “beyond competition,” or literally “without rival.” With buttercream, nuts, and meringue, it is indeed a special dessert. The dish arrived in the Philippines by students returning from French universities in the 1920s and '30s. Sans rival cake represents their adaptation of French recipes to the produce available in the Philippines, including nuts like pistachios and cashews. The dish was later brought to the United States by Filipino immigrants.

Recipe Servings: 8

Prep Time
40 minutes
Cook Time
30 minutes
Total Time
1 hour 10 minutes
Vegetarian
Vegan
Gluten Free
Dairy Free
Kosher
Halal

Ingredients

Cake Layers:
  • Nonstick cooking spray, as needed to grease pans
  • All-purpose flour, as needed to dust pans
  • 6 large egg whites
  • ⅔ cup sugar
  • 1 cup cashew nuts, finely chopped
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
Filling:
  • ⅔ cup sugar
  • 3 Tbsp water
  • 6 large egg yolks
  • 16 Tbsp butter, softened and divided
  • 1½ Tbsp rum
Assembly:

Directions

    For Cake Layers:
  1. Preheat oven to 325°F.
  2. Place either four 8-inch round cake pans or three 9-inch round cake pans upside down. Grease and flour the exterior bottoms of the pans. 
  3. Beat the egg whites in a mixing bowl until soft peaks form.
  4. Add the sugar gradually, continuing to beat until stiff peaks form.
  5. Fold in the cashews and vanilla.
  6. Spread the mixture in a thin layer on the prepared inverted pans.
  7. Bake about 20 minutes, until golden-brown.
  8. Carefully transfer the baked layers to a cooling rack.
  9. For Filling:
  10. Boil the sugar and water in a saucepan, heating the mixture to 230–235°F on a candy thermometer.
  11. Beat the egg yolks in a mixing bowl until the consistency thickens.
  12. Pour the sugar syrup slowly into the egg yolks, beating continuously.
  13. Whip the eggs until they have cooled, then add softened butter one tablespoon at a time, mixing thoroughly.
  14. Whip the mixture until all the ingredients are thoroughly combined.
  15. Stir in the rum.
  16. For Assembly: 
  17. Place one of the cake layers on a cake plate and cover it with some of the filling mixture.
  18. Sprinkle the filling with cashews, and then continue layering the cake, filling, and cashews until all are used.
  19. Frost the top and sides of the cake with any remaining filling and sprinkle the top with any remaining chopped cashews.

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