Prague cake, a Moscow classic at Muffin Taffin

The Prague cake is a chocolate dessert from Moscow, not from the Czech capital, and Muffin Taffin keeps that story on the counter in Budva.

Pastry chef Vladimir Guralnik developed it at the Prague restaurant, where the name stuck to a dense cocoa sponge, chocolate cream and a shine of apricot jam under the glaze.

How the glaze stays bright

Bakers brush warm apricot jam over the chilled cake, then pour a thin chocolate glaze. The jam stops the glaze from sinking into the crumb and gives the classic mirror finish.

In November, cooler air in Montenegro suits this rich cake. Muffin Taffin cuts it for sales by the slice and takes whole cakes for orders ahead of weekend gatherings.

Guests who already know Soviet chocolate cakes often ask for Prague beside lighter sponges, because the apricot note keeps the cocoa from tasting flat.