Mint cake

Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay carried this confection to the summit of Mount Everest in 1953, leaving one bar behind as a Buddhist offering. Kendal mint cake originated in Kendal at the edge of the English Lakes District. It was invented when a confectioner failed to stop stirring a toffee in time. The cake itself is pure sugar, and popular with mountaineers and adventurers. It keeps and travels well. Shackleton's Antarctic expedition carried Kendal mint cake, as did Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman when they motorbiked from London to New York. Mint cake is very easy to make. The recipe following contains 8000kJ -- about one day's energy intake. Glucose is available from the supermarket and stops sugar crystals forming. Peppermint oil is available from health stores. As this is the key flavour, a high quality oil is recommended. As a variation, you can use brown sugar. 150mL water 25mL glucose syrup (corn syrup) 500g white sugar 10 drops peppermint oil Before you begin, have ready a rubber spatula and a flat tray to contain the finished product. Boil the water, sugar, and glucose syrup, in a heavy saucepan, stirring all the while. Once thickened and cloudy, sit for 5 minutes, then stir in peppermint oil. Pour onto your tray so that the mixture is thin, and allowed to set rapidly. Rapid cooling prevents large sugar crystals (same principal applies to rocks -- compare diorite and andesite). Romney's Kendal Mint Cake is available from Ashore in Auckland. Read more about Kendal mint cake here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mint_cake