A Sushi
Wedding Cake
Jef and Jin Yoon like sushi--a
lot. We missed their wedding, but I promised them we'd have a festive reception
for them in Boston when they got back from their honeymoon. Jef requested sushi,
which was neither a surprise nor a problem. I wanted to do something different,
though, and a little more obviously wedding-y. Hence, the wedding sushi cake.
![](0706wowweddingpix/sushicakebig.jpg)
Ingredients:
- 6 c raw short-grain rice,
steamed, cooled, but not prepared with vinegar as for sushi (refrigerating
the vinegared rice causes the texture to change and become undesirable)
- 1 1/4 pounds sushi-grade
salmon, cut into long nigiri-style slices
- 1 pound sushi-grade yellowtail,
3/4 of it cut into long nigiri-style slices, the rest chopped and set aside
- 1 lb sushi-grade tuna,
3/4 of it cut into long nigiri-style slices, the rest chopped and set aside
- 3/4 c tobiko
- 1/2 c wasabi tobiko
- 1 c ikura
- 1 block tamago, cut into
stars, hearts, and crescents with canape cutters, scraps saved and minced
- 1 lb cooked shrimp, peeled,
deveined, and minced
- 1 tbsp Korean hot pepper
powder
- 1/2 tsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp high-quality canola-oil
mayo
- 1/2 seedless cucumber,
partially peeled in decorative stripes, then sliced thinly into quarter- and
semi-circles
- 2 c loosely packed mache
leaves
- pickled ginger, drained
and pressed into rosebud shapes
- 5 scallions, green parts
only, finely chopped
- 1 c cilantro, finely
chopped
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp fish sauce
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tbsp inamona (kukui
nut)
- 3 ripe avocadoes, all
but one half mashed; reserved half thinly sliced the long way
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp salt
Equipment:
- one 12-inch, one 9-inch,
and one 6-inch cake pan, standard wedding-cake sizes, lined with plastic wrap,
with lengths of plastic wrap extending over the sides
- one 9-inch and one 6-inch
round of heavy cardboard, covered in foil
- one 3-inch round ring
mold
- one 14-inch or larger
completely flat plate, preferably sturdy and not fragile
- heavy cans, jars, or
other items to use as weights
- refrigerator space
- bride and groom cake
toppers of your choice
Directions for 12-inch
Tier:
- Form the tier from the
bottom up, arranging cucumbers, tamago pieces, and edamame carefully on the
plastic wrap in the pan in an attractive pattern.
- Lay the salmon slices
on top, being careful not to disturb the first layer, like spokes of a wheel.
Let the salmon come slightly up the sides of the pan.
- Mix 1/2 of the rice with
the tobiko and press 1/2 of the resulting mixture into the pan, careful not
to disarrange the salmon.
- Mix shrimp with hot pepper
powder and next three ingredients. Lay spicy shrimp mixture on rice.
- Press remaining 1/2 of
tobiko rice on shrimp.
- Fold plastic wrap over
securely. Weight pan and chill for 4-8 hours.
Directions for 9-inch Tier:
- Form the tier from the
bottom up, arranging cucumbers, tamago pieces, and edamame carefully on the
plastic wrap in the pan in an attractive pattern.
- Lay the tuna slices on
top, being careful not to disturb the first layer, like spokes of a wheel.
Let the tuna come slightly up the sides of the pan.
- Mix 2/3 of the remaining
rice with the wasabi tobiko and press 1/2 of the resulting mixture into the
pan, careful not to disarrange the tuna.
- Mix mashed avocadoes
with next two ingredients. Mix in 1/2 of the cilantro. Lay avocado mixture
on rice.
- Press remaining 1/2 of
wasabi tobiko rice on avocado.
- Fold plastic wrap over
securely. Weight pan and chill for 4-8 hours.
Directions for 6-inch Tier:
- Form the tier from the
bottom up, arranging cucumbers, tamago pieces, and edamame carefully on the
plastic wrap in the pan in an attractive pattern.
- Lay the hamachi (yellowtail)
slices on top, being careful not to disturb the first layer, like spokes of
a wheel. Let the yellowtail come slightly up the sides of the pan.
- Mix 1/2 of the rice with
the minced tamago scraps and press 1/2 of the resulting mixture into the pan,
careful not to disarrange the yellowtail.
- Mix chopped yellowtail
with chopped scallions. Lay negi-hama mixture on rice.
- Press remaining 1/2 of
tamago rice on negi-hama mixture.
- Fold plastic wrap over
securely. Weight pan and chill for 4-8 hours.
Directions for 3-inch Tier:
- Mix chopped tuna with
remaining 1/2 of cilantro and next five ingredients. Pack into ring mold on
a small plate and chill 4-8 hours.
Directions for Assembly:
- Flip 12-inch tier out
onto big platter.
- Flip 9-inch and 6-inch
tiers out onto foil-covered rounds.
- Center 9-inch tier, cardboard
round and all, on 12-inch tier, then center 6-inch tier on top of that.
- Push poke mixture (in
ring mold) out onto center of 6-inch tier.
- Garnish with mache lettuce
leaves, edamame, tamago shapes, rosebud gari, avocado slices, and cucumber
slices. Pour ikura over in a few cascades from top down. Top with cake toppers.
Serve with wasabi, soy sauce, and a citrus-wasabi sauce on the side.
Bonus: An Ice Cream Wedding
Cake
After a sushi wedding cake
dinner, an ice cream wedding cake dessert seemed only natural (especially given
the love of frozen sweet treats among the bride and groom and wedding guests).
![](0706wowweddingpix/icecrmcakebig.jpg)
The bottom tier was a coconut
brownie topped with coconut ice cream; the middle tier was green tea ice cream
and coconut ice cream with a vanilla cake filling; and the top tier was raspberry
and mango sorbets with fresh raspberries swirled together. All the ice cream
was goat's milk ice cream. I topped the cake with the top of a pineapple and
garnished it with halved fresh mochi filled with marshmallows and fruit jelly,
chocolate-covered macadamia nuts, strawberries, raspberries, chopped mango,
and chopped pineapple. Served with hot fudge on the side, after a meal, it could
probably feed 12-20 people.
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Created: 6/3/07. Last Modified: 6/3/07.