Kyiv hazelnut meringue cake (Kyivskyi tort)

1. Toast the hazelnuts in a dry frying pan for 5 minutes, rub off the skins in a tea towel and chop coarsely; set a handful aside for decoration. Preheat the oven to 150 °C, line two baking trays with baking paper and draw a 22 cm circle on each.

2. Whisk the room-temperature egg whites to stiff peaks, then add the sugar a spoonful at a time and whisk for 8-10 minutes into a glossy, stiff meringue. Mix the hazelnuts with the flour and gently fold them into the meringue with a spatula.

3. Divide the meringue between the two circles and smooth it out; bake for 1.5-2 hours until crisp outside and pale golden; let cool in the switched-off oven with the door ajar (so it doesn't crack).

4. For the cream, beat the soft butter for 5 minutes until fluffy, then add the condensed milk a spoonful at a time and finally the cocoa powder; you'll get a smooth, glossy cream.

5. Put one meringue layer on a cake plate, spread with half the cream, put the second layer on top and cover the top and sides with the rest of the cream; sprinkle with the reserved hazelnuts.

6. Chill for at least 4 hours and slice with a sharp knife dipped in hot water.

Tip: Kyiv cake was born of a "mistake" in 1956: at the Karl Marx confectionery factory, egg whites forgotten overnight had set – the confectioners mixed in hazelnuts, and the symbol of Kyiv was born, traditionally given as a present in a round box.