Flore's No-Bake Cake

I attended a funeral yesterday for a woman I barely knew. She was part of my extended family, mother-in-law to a cousin who I'm close to. I like to attend funerals because it is often the best glimpse at who the person really was and what effect they had on those closest to them on this Earth.

Flore was 93 when she died. The same age as my beloved great-grandmother Molly was when she died 10 years ago. Flore's family rose one by one to speak of the love she brought into each of their lives and how much they would miss her. Like Molly, she brought people together over her cooking. Family was important to her. Feeding those she loved was her joy.

As a person who loves to cook and share good times over food, I understood her desire to create memories not only for herself but for those who surrounded her with love. I was delighted to see that her family put together a small sampling of her favourite recipes to share with the rest of us. Included in the buffet following her service, was Flore's no-bake cake, a favourite of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. I tried a piece, thought it was terrific, then channelled Molly by getting another piece, wrapping it up in a napkin and tucking it away in my purse. (Molly was famous for 'pilfering' food at the Chinese buffets. She always carried a shaker of cayenne pepper around in her purse too, but that's another story.) So without further ado, I give you Flore's recipe for her no-bake cake:

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp of butter
2 egg yolks
500g of icing sugar
30 tea biscuits, broken into small pieces
175 ml. of strong coffee
2 Tbsp of cocoa powder
1 Tsp of vanilla
a pinch of salt

In a big bowl, mix the icing sugar and cocoa powder. Add the salt, butter and hot coffee and mix well. Add the yolks and vanilla and mix well. Fold in the tea biscuit pieces. Press the mixture into a pyrex dish and cover it with waxed paper. Refridgerate for one hour. Cut into squares to serve. Watch the people you share it with smile. Enjoy!