We make this pretty floral cake every year to mark the midsummer solstice and it’s one of our favourite bakes of the season. So simple to whip up, with a lovely unpolished finish, it’s the sort of cake that fits in perfectly for the provincial village fete and puts everyone happily in mind of fairies, rose gardens and English garden parties. This year it also coincided with Father’s Day as it often can, so it served two celebrations in one.
Notes
For those who haven’t used rosewater much, it has a beautiful but strong aroma which can become overpowering if used too liberally. If you’re nervous of adding it or know you find it too intense and perfumed even in tiny amounts, you can swap it out for vanilla, orange blossom, lemon or even just leave it out altogether.
WHAT YOU’LL NEED
Equipment:
- large mixing bowl
- medium mixing bowl
- 8 inch (20cm) cake tin
Serves: 8 -10
INGREDIENTS
The cake batter:
- 300 grams of almond flour
- 2 teaspoons of baking powder
- 100 grams caster sugar
- 3 eggs
- 250 grams natural unsweetened yoghurt
- 60 grams melted butter, lightly salted
- 2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
- 1 teaspoon orange blossom water
- zest, 1 orange
The icing:
- 180 grams icing sugar
- 1 teaspoon rose water (or just a few drops if preferred)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons whole milk
To decorate:
- 30 grams chopped pistachios
- 3 tablespoons dried rose petals
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 160°C fan oven. Grease and line your an 8 inch, 20cm, round tin.
The cake:
-
Place the almond flour, baking powder, sea salt & caster sugar in a large mixing bowl and combine.
-
Place eggs in a medium mixing bowl and whisk lightly. Add the yoghurt, orange juice, orange blossom water, zest & melted butter and combine fully.
-
Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and mix thoroughly.
-
Pour mixture into your prepared cake tin. Sprinkle the surface of the batter with two tablespoons of caster sugar before placing in the oven.
-
Bake for approximately 60 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean and the top is golden. Allow to cool.
The glaze:
- To make the glaze, combine icing sugar, rose water, and whole milk and whisk to combine. If the glaze is too thick, continue to add small amounts of milk until the mixture is just pourable.
-
Pour over cooled cake as desired – we like it to drizzle fairly randomly down the sides for an undone look.
To decorate:
While the icing is still setting, sprinkle with crushed pistachios and rose petals before serving with a healthy dollop of mascarpone or whipped cream.
