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Silvanas
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Silvanas

Cashew meringue sandwich cookies

Dumaguete, the university town on Negros Oriental, made silvanas famous: oval wafers of chewy cashew meringue sandwiched with rich yolk buttercream, coated all over in more buttercream and crumbs, then frozen. Visitors take boxes home in cool bags, and across the Philippines they are a birthday and pasalubong (homecoming gift) treat, eaten straight from the freezer when they are firm, crunchy and creamy at once. They are a cousin of the larger sans rival cake. The meringue needs patience; underbaked wafers go sticky and soft as soon as the buttercream touches them, so bake until they lift cleanly off the paper. Chef's tip: use the yolks left from the meringue for the buttercream, and pour the hot syrup down the side of the bowl, not on the whisk, or it spins into threads.

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