The 1940s Cake Accident That Ultimately Became A San Francisco Legend - Tasting Table

"Per the lore, after a bakery employee accidentally overboiled a batch of Blum's (supposed-to-be) soft coffee candy, Weil leapt into a thrifty effort not to waste it. The pastry chef broke the crispy, honeycombed sugar candy into small pieces and added it to Blum's regular sponge cake. The result was a light, fluffy, lemon-tinged chiffon cake dotted with crunchy textural morsels."

"Over time, the West Coast classic was refined into a dimensional, decadent, two-layer treat covered in bittersweet frosting. To assemble, the chiffon cake gets allover-frosted in a coffee-flavored whipped cream infused with vanilla and instant coffee granules, and sprinkled with a generous coating of the shattered coffee candy pieces. A center layer of candy shards (a combination of sugar, strongly-brewed coffee, corn syrup) gives this cake the "coffee crunch" factor in its name, and it quickly emerged as a signature sweet of the city."

Blum's coffee crunch cake began in the 1940s when overboiled coffee candy was repurposed and mixed into chiffon sponge cake, producing a light, lemon-tinged cake studded with crunchy candy pieces. Pastry chef Ernest Weil, trained at Le Cordon Bleu, led the rescue that transformed the mishap into a distinctive texture and flavor. The cake evolved into a refined two-layer dessert with coffee-flavored whipped-cream frosting, vanilla and instant coffee granules, and a center layer of shattered coffee-candy shards made from sugar, strong coffee, and corn syrup. The confection became a beloved San Francisco signature at Blum's Bakery, which operated from 1892 until its closure in the 1970s.

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