Updated October 27, 2026

Sans Rival

Sans rival is a Filipino dessert cake made of layers of buttercream, meringue, and chopped cashews. Its name means "without rival" in French. The cake may be decorated, left plain, or garnished with pistachios.

Watch it cooked

Method

1.
Heat oven to 150°C. Grease + flour four 8-inch round pans, line the bases with baking paper.
2.
Mix cashews + flour. Set aside.
3.
Beat egg whites + cream of tartar, adding sugar 1 tbsp at a time. Whip to medium peaks (~4 min). Fold in the nut mix in 3 additions.
4.
Divide between the pans and smooth the tops. Bake 35–40 min until golden.
5.
Run a knife around the edges, flip onto a rack, peel off the paper, cool.
6.
Whip yolks until pale (~5 min).
7.
Boil sugar + water to 115°C. Pour into the yolks in a slow stream while mixing. Whip 8–10 min until cool.
8.
Add butter one cube at a time, then vanilla. Whip 5 min until silky.
9.
Stack the layers with buttercream, frost, and cover in chopped cashews.
10.
Chill before slicing.