Marcella Hazan’s Crisp-Fried Courgette Blossoms.
National Eat Your Vegetables Day is this coming Monday, June 17.
By now the penny has dropped with even the most ardent carnivore that we don’t need huge quantities of meat to be fit and healthy.
A particularly delicious carrot cake, it keeps really well and may well be the best carrot cake I’ve ever eaten!
Servings
8Preparation Time
30 minsCooking Time
50 minsTotal Time
1 hours 20 minsCourse
BakingIngredients
250g shelled, unblanched almonds
225g plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
110g dry ladyfingers
250g carrots, peeled
2 ½ tsp baking powder
a pinch of salt
1 tbsp Amaretto liqueur
4 large eggs
flaked almonds (optional)
1 x 25.5cm springform pan
2 tsp butter for greasing the pan
1 tbsp flour for dusting the pan
To Serve
225ml heavy cream, whipped with 1 teaspoon of sugar
Method
Preheat the oven to 180°C/Gas Mark 4.
Put the almonds and the sugar in a food processor and chop as finely as possible. Transfer to a large mixing bowl. Break up the ladyfingers into pieces about 2.5cm long, place them in the food processor, and grind to a powder. Add to the almonds and sugar in the mixing bowl. Cut the carrots into pieces about 2.5cm long and chop in the food processor as finely as possible. Add to the bowl, mixing them in well with the other ingredients.
Add the baking powder, the salt, and the Amaretto liqueur and mix well. Separate the eggs and add the yolks, mixing them in until they are well distributed with the other ingredients. Put the whites in the bowl of an electric mixer.
Whip the egg whites with an electric mixer or by hand until they form stiff peaks. Take a couple of tablespoons of the beaten egg whites and mix them with the ingredients in the bowl to soften the mixture a bit. Pour the rest of the egg whites onto the mixture and carefully fold them in with a rubber spatula.
Grease the bottom and sides of the springform pan with the butter and dust it with flour. Pour the batter into the pan, then shake the pan a bit until the batter is evenly distributed. Sprinkle some flaked almonds over the top if desired.
Place the cake in the upper level of the preheated oven and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the cake.
When the cake is cool, cut it into 8-12 pieces and serve with a dollop of whipped cream.
Coincidentally, I just received a copy of by Ceri Jones published by Pavillion.
‘Taking 40 vegetables, from the humble potato to celeriac, Ceri shows you the best ways to prepare them, the tastiest flavour pairings and two or three recipes for a simple supper or side dishes for each.
This is a book that celebrates seasonality, produce, sustainability and, of course, eating more vegetables.’
KNF is a bio organic farming method which focuses on what are called indigenous microorganisms – bacteria, fungi, nematodes and protozoa. This improves soil health which yields high output without the use of herbicides or pesticides.
Newsletter
The best food, health, entertainment and lifestyle content from the Irish Examiner, direct to your inbox.
