A tasty history While the baba au rhum dessert doesn’t sound like it has French roots (the word “baba” is a Persian honorific ...

The baba au rhum that we know today started life as just a baba (the Polish word for “old woman” and its diminutive form, babka, became a sobriquet for the cakes in the 1640s), and a dry one ...

One of the sweets he sold was Leszczyński’s babka, soaked with rum instead of wine – baba au rhum. Apparently, he was the one to give it the characteristic mushroom shape the cake is known for today.

Impress your guests with this rum-soaked, retro classic. You will need four 11cm/4½in baba tins (savarin moulds). Alternatively you can use small dariole moulds. Place the flour in a large bowl.

Fill in the blank: Baba au…? If the only word that springs to mind is “rhum,” then you clearly haven’t dined out in England’s capital lately. At Da Terra in East London, chef Rafael Cagali finishes ...