Instructions: With a long, serrated knife, slice cake in half horizontally. Place bottom half, cut-side up, on a wide plate. Moisten evenly with 2/3 of the orange syrup.

Spoon all the cream filling onto bottom cake half; if it flows over the sides, set cake in the refrigerator for a few minutes until filling is firm enough to stay in place, then scrape it back on top.

Set remaining cake half, cut-side down, on filling, aligning neatly with bottom half. With a short spatula held upright against cake sides, smooth filling into crevices between the layers. Cover airtight with a large inverted bowl and chill at least 1 hour.

With a thin skewer, pierce top of cake (but not filling) at 1/2-inch intervals, then slowly spoon remaining orange syrup over cake, letting it soak in. Cover cake with bowl again and chill while you roll out marzipan.

With your hands, knead marzipan into a single lump, then pat into a 1/4- to 1/2-inch-thick round, pressing edges to keep them smooth. With a rolling pin, roll marzipan between 2 sheets of plastic wrap (keep smooth) to make a neat round 14 to 15 inches wide (lift plastic occasionally to press cracking edges together, then lay plastic back on top).

Pull off top piece of plastic wrap. Supporting marzipan with bottom piece of plastic wrap, invert it over cake, center, lay it on cake, and peel off wrap. Gently press marzipan neatly against sides of cake and plate rim around cake. With a knife or fluted ravioli cutter, trim marzipan flush with cake base on plate. Remove marzipan scraps and shape into decorations, such as a ribbon; arrange on cake. Serve cake, or cover with inverted bowl and chill.

This recipe yields 8 to 10 servings.

Comments: When my friend Danielle entertains, shes apt to offer one of her two favorite things for dessert: chocolate - in any form - or a princess cake, an old Swedish classic. The name is fitting; thats precisely how you feel when dessert is served. And this royal cake can pull rank during the holidays. Santa would swoon if he found a wedge waiting with his glass of milk.

The smooth mantle of marzipan that wraps a princess cake like a gift is probably what makes most cooks assume its difficult to make. Nothing could be further from the delicious truth. This very manageable dessert is assembled like building blocks. And it has the potential for a wide variety of flavor shifts. Bake one cake, split it, moisten the layers with a light syrup (any flavor you like, with or without liqueur), and fill them with a fluffy cream (good enough for dessert on its own, flavored as you like). The easiest part looks the hardest: the marzipan wrap (the Swedes like to tint it pale green). Just roll out the marzipan like a pie crust and fit it onto the cake like a second skin - with that spandex cling.

You can assemble the cake up to 2 days ahead. The cake and syrup can be made 1 day before assembling; cover separately and store at room temperature. Prepare filling just before you put the cake together.

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