I do love the occasional lamington, but have never really wondered about how these fabulous morsels came into being. Luckily, the SMH answered my unanswered question yesterday. Although The Age has an online version that includes a picture of the alleged creator, Armand Galland.
Galland was a French chef working for the Governor and Lady Lamington in Queensland's Government House just before the time of Federation. He used the French technique of dipping cake in chocolate and is thought to have been inspired by his French Tahitian wife to add coconut to his creation. Whatever his inspiration, it was truly divine, and I thank him for it.
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ReplyDeleteLOL ... I never liked Lamingtons when I was growing up but came to like a good one in my twenties (and then of course food intolerance hit and they are off the agenda again). I love stories about the origins of food.
ReplyDeleteI think I've told you the story of the Cake Stall at an American school where the organisers labelled Lamingtons (provided by an Aussie who didn't think to label them herself) as Coconut Brownies. I quickly disabused them, fearing brownie rage when the purchaser got them home only to discover soft creamy coloured cake inside!
(Sorry, deleted first attempt as there was a typo and commenters can't edit, it seems, their comments)