The words courgette and cake probably shouldn't go together. . . but Flora's Famous Courgette Cake is the exception. This may seem like a random blog post, but it is in fact courgette season. We've been growing them in the garden and we've got a bit of a monster haul this year. There's only so many times you can have courgette for dinner, so I decided to experiment a bit with the baking. I came across this recipe in Nigella's 'How to be a Domestic Goddess' (I'm ashamed to say I own this book). It's called Flora's Famous Courgette Cake and it's actually quite brilliant. What I don't understand is how Nigella manages to reference Aphrodite in a recipe for Courgette Cake. I suppose it's to be expected!
Cake
60g raisins (optional)
250g courgettes (2/3) before grating
2 large eggs
125ml vegetable oil
150g caster sugar
225g self-raising flour
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Lime Curd Filling
75g unsalted butter
3 large eggs
75g caster sugar
125ml lime juice (4/5 limes worth)
zest of 1 lime
75g unsalted butter
3 large eggs
75g caster sugar
125ml lime juice (4/5 limes worth)
zest of 1 lime
Icing
200g cream cheese
100g icing sugar
Juice of 1 lime
Chopped pistachio nuts or hazelnuts
2) With the raisins, put them in a bowl and cover with warm water to plump them up.
3) Wash the courgettes and then grate them - but not too finely - otherwise it will turn to mush. Sieve out any excess water.
4) Next put the eggs, oil and sugar in a bowl and beat until creamy
5) Sieve in the flour, bicarbonate of soda and baking powder and continue to beat until well combined.
6) Now stir in the grated courgette and add the drained raisins.
7) Pour the mixture into the tins and bake for 30 minutes until browned and firm to touch.
8) Leave in the tins to cool for 10 minutes or so and then turn them out onto a wire rack.
9) Now for the lime curd. . .Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the eggs, caster sugar, lime juice and zest and then whisk until thick. Be careful though. . . don't let the pan get too hot and immediately whisk, otherwise you may scramble your lime curd!
And sorry. . . I don't have the photos for this bit - cameras/whisking/hot pans don't mix.
10) Now spread the lime curd filling over the two cakes.
11) Now to make the cream cheese icing. Nigella seems quite generous. . . so I would probably do a bit less than the recipe suggests. I think 150g of cream cheese and 75g icing sugar should do it.
12) Beat the cream cheese until smooth and then add the sieved icing sugar and lime juice to taste, continuing to beat until combined.
13) If you find the lime curd or the cream cheese frosting a little runny - put them in the fridge for 20 minutes before assembling the cake.
14) Using a spatula - dollop the cream cheese icing on the top and smooth over. Sprinkle with pistachios or hazelnuts.
And so there you have it! Flora's Famous Courgette Cake. I'm hoping that my next baking escapade will also involve some garden produce. Think rhubarb.
