Pain de Gène

The Split-mix method is where a batter is made with eggs and generally ground nuts, then aerated by beating separately. Egg whites are whisked to a full meringue, then the meringue is folded into the batter.

Pain de Gène or Genoa cake is named after the Italian port town of Genoa. In 1800 the town lay siege to a French marshal and the people of the city were starving, their only food being rice and almonds. During the siege they consumed more than 50 tonnes of almonds. Pain de Gène