Quick Cook: A no bake Lazy Cake for hot summer nights

Even food writers loathe the thought of turning on the stove during these sweltering summer days. But as fall decor and jack-o’-lanterns take over retail storefronts — yes, already — fall baking nostalgia starts making a comeback as well. How does a baking aficionado reconcile this quandary? Say hello to the no-bake lazy cake.

While the lazy cake has enjoyed iconic status across the Middle East for decades, this dessert is not typical of Arab sweets. The cake is called “lazy,” because there is no baking required. Instead of flour, the foundation of the batter consists of crushed English digestive biscuits – or Marie or Maria biscuits — possibly  a remnant of the British colonial presence in the Middle East. As desert temperatures rise, families can enjoy this no-bake dessert, often serving the cake to guests right from the freezer.

During my summers in Bethlehem, Palestine, my grandmother always kept a lazy cake, shaped like a cylinder and wrapped in foil, in the freezer. As children, we marveled as she sliced the cake like salami. Biting into this confection, the flavor and texture were like a fusion of a dense cookie, fudge and candy bar all at once.

There are variations, too. You can make a quick ganache to spread on top for a fancier presentation, or add chocolate-hazelnut butter to the batter for an even richer depth of flavor.

Lazy Cake

Makes 1 cake

INGREDIENTS

20 large digestive biscuits or 36 smaller Marie biscuits

1/2 stick butter, softened

3/4 cup condensed milk

4 rounded tablespoons cocoa

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

2/3 cup chocolate-hazelnut butter or Nutella (optional)

Chocolate ganache: 1/2 cup chocolate chips and 1/2 cup cream (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Place the cookies in a large plastic bag. Pound with a mallet until they resemble coarse crumbs. (Don’t pulverize them. You want some texture.) Set aside.

Mix the butter, condensed milk, cocoa, 1/2 cup chocolate chips and optional Nutella in a glass bowl. Microwave for about 1 minute, then mix until smooth or until the butter is completely melted. Gradually fold in cookie crumbs.

Line a 9-inch cake pan or a loaf pan with parchment paper. Scoop in the lazy cake, smooth it, then placing a sheet of parchment or plastic wrap on the surface, press down evenly, so the cake is firmly packed. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate, if planning to eat that day, or wrap in foil and freeze for later.