Holy Moly Cannoli! This is a BIG cake!! It is certainly big in size and most definitely big in flavor. Before you are three 9-inch round layers of delicious yellow cake filled with a mixture of mascarpone, mini chocolate chips, and a touch of cinnamon, then frosted with lightly sweetened whipped cream. To take it up a notch, the sides of the cake are garnished with rolled wafer cookies that, when served immediately, give you that flaky crunch reminiscent of the fried pastry dough of a bakery cannoli. It truly is the classic Italian pastry in cake form.
Now, let's talk about execution. After reading the recipe, I knew the baked cake layers would be slightly denser (almost pound cake-like), so I decided to make a simple syrup (just equal parts sugar and water) to keep the cakes moist. On Saturday, while the cakes were baking, I made the simple syrup. While the cakes were cooling, I made the filling. By the end of the day, the cakes were brushed with the syrup, filled, covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated overnight.
On Sunday (the day of serving), I brought the cake to room temperature. About 2 hours before serving, I started on the whipped cream, but not a basic whipped cream. Basic whipped cream for desserts will weep liquid if made in advance. There are many ways to stabilize whipped cream, but this recipe calls for a gelatin mixture (I use Knox's powdered gelatin). The gelatin binds with liquid to keep it from weeping in order to keep it light and airy. This allows the frosted cake to sit out for a couple of hours (But keep it in a cool place and out of the sun.). If you choose to garnish the cake with rolled wafer cookies, like Pepperidge Farm Priouettes, wait until just before serving. Otherwise, the cookies will become soft. So, if you know you will have leftovers, serve the cookies on the side for that sweet little crunch.
