G. i. J.
Yelp
I just had the Italian Rum Cake. I am not sure if it is an East Coast thing, but for me, an Italian Rum Cake should NOT have a messy chocolate filling or any distinct fruitiness hidden within. The fruit should definitely not be what appeared as rotting, sour cherries. The cake and rum flavoring were good, as was the icing.
To the bakers at Leonard Novelty Bakery: Make the Italian Rum Cake about the creamy icing, the delicate cake, the incredibly delicious toasted almonds, and the rum flavoring ONLY, and you will have yourselves a winner in the extreme. It will also make the cake highly desirable by those of us with chocolate allergies.
And if you wanted to have a "fruit" version, try a thin glaze (non-gelatin, please, for vegetarians) or thinly-layered filling of seedless raspberry or strawberry jam -- made to be a very delicate essence, nothing overwhelming. Either of those would be another winner. Just be sure to have a purely rum-flavored version, too, for those of us who are purists.