"Asians love glitter." —Pichet Ong

[Photo: Spot]

Normally I'm not a dessert guy, but yesterday I stopped by Pichet Ong's Spot, which Kathy reviewed earlier today, for one of the chef's seasonal desserts: jackfruit cake with rum toffee and coconut. I've had young jackfruit cooked in savory Indonesian preparations as well as raw mature jackfruit. Why not try it baked into a sweet treat? The gigantic fruit is native to Southeast Asia, so I was curious to see what the Taiwanese-born, Thai-raised dessert chef would do with its sticky flesh.

Rum and "Disco Sparkles," after the jump.

Ong incorporates the jackfruit into a deep brown cake studded with raisins for a lighter take on traditional Christmas pudding. After baking it gets soaked with rum-scented toffee butter. Planks of ripe jackfruit, bits of coconut macaron and a quenelle of coconut sorbet surmounted by a band of basil seeds keep the rich cake company. It's so good, it might just might make me become a dessert guy after all.

Oh, and there's one other ingredient—Disco Sparkles—a fine, iridescent edible glitter. It's dessert as bling. When asked about this grace note, Ong replied, "Asians love glitter."

Spot

13 St. Mark's Place, New York NY 10003 (map)
212-677-5670