Friday Challenge 2012: A look back at what I’ve learnt

I’m afraid to say that I’m finished with my Friday Challenge feature for 2012! When I first set out doing it, it was mainly because I had started reading a lot more food blogs/ food magazines and I realised that there were loads of things in the food world which I had never cooked before!! I found myself leaving comments over and over again all saying the same thing “I’ve never tried that before but it looks nice”, so I thought well why not just get off my bum and try it instead of bookmarking it for the future. I’m the sort of person who likes a bit of structure in my life so Scott had suggested that I use my new-found desire to learn to set myself more of a cooking routine and create interesting blog posts along the way, which hopefully I did over the last 10 months

Some of the ingredients such as tofu, polenta, gnocchi and artichokes were all things that I had simply never cooked before. Tofu was my first choice because it seemed an obvious vegetarian ingredient. I quickly learnt after a few failed attempts at the Wagamama’s tofu soup that you need to press tofu otherwise it all falls apart. This challenge for me was as much about learning the balance of Asian flavours as it was about actual cooking techniques for tofu.

Sweet Marinated Tofu and Noodle Salad. My first ever Tofu recipe

Unlike tofu, which I had at least eaten in restaurants before, polenta was something I had no idea how to make or what it even tasted or felt like! Now I cook it all the time and I feel I have the confidence to be a bit more creative with it. My favourite polenta own recipe is still the first one I created because I felt it was when I began to get confident with flavours!

Spanish inspired black olive polenta with a smokey tomato sauce

Tomato soup with Basil Gnocchi Dumplings

I really enjoyed the artichoke challenge but I think I could have learnt a lot more. In the end it was more about the flavour rather than using a whole fresh artichoke in different ways!

Baked Artichoke and Quinoa Salad with Watercress

Others topicss I chose for my Friday Challenges were techniques or recipes which I had cooked a handful of times but I really wasn’t sure if I had done it correctly, such as risotto, cakes and bread. I know I still haven’t quite mastered the art of baking bread yet but that has become like my own personal Everest, and I’m still tackling it so I promise I will get my own recipe out there soon! Cakes on the other hand were given two months because I just had so much fun!

Coconut, Cherry and Dark Chocolate Cake with a Flaked Almond and Brown Sugar topping

I found risotto interesting because I discovered Delia’s Baked risotto which meant there was no boring standing and stirring bit. But in the end I stuck with tradition and veganised it which worked really nicely. I always avoid risotto in restaurants because it’s too rich with lots of cream and cheese so it was nice to have a fresher taste.

Many Herbs and Peas Risotto

Finally the other topics I chose were chocolate and spices, both chosen because although I use them all the time I had not developed a proper understanding of how to use them in the best possible way. Chocolate was fun because I have eaten ALOT of it before but not really cooked with it, other than melting it to drizzle on things. In the end I kind of used lots of techniques I’d learnt all in one dish -

White Chocolate and Raspberry Mousse in edible chocolate cups

Curried Coconut Quinoa with Tofu and Green Beans

I’m stopping for the year now not because I think I’ve learnt everything there is to learn – far from it!! – but because I just want to focus on a few other things going on and it has become more of a hassle than a fun experience. I have another big feature planned for next year sort of along the same lines which I am really excited about!! But you’ll find out about that nearer the time mwahaha.

Thank you to everyone who let me cook their recipes and helped me learn all these new techniques! x

Curried Coconut Quinoa with Tofu and Green Beans

This is my Friday Challenge own recipe using pretty much everything I have learnt over the last few weeks. I focused on using the curry leaf powder because this is something I had no experience with. It has quite a strong flavour so I toned it down with some coconut, which also made the quinoa lovely and creamy.

I also loved the technique used in Simon Rimmer’s recipe for ‘Plantain and Mango Curry‘ where he added turmeric to the water when cooking the plantain which turned them bright yellow. I decided to use this technique when cooking my quinoa and it worked beautifully. Adding turmeric doesn’t add much to the flavour but it does add to the colour! Perfect when your after quite a subtle flavour.

And finally the last thing I have used from my past posts is Jamie Oliver’s Korma Curry Paste. I chose the korma curry paste because I had added coconut to the quinoa and so this would create a lovely mild sauce which will compliment the spiced quinoa and fresh green beans.

I think one thing I might possibly change if I was to make this again, is that it’s a very yellow dish! I like a variety of colours on my plate and so maybe some reds and stronger greens by adding fresh chillies and spinach could make this look better!

Serves 4

150g (1 cup) Quinoa
500ml Water
1 tspn Ground Turmeric
2 tspn Curry Leaf Powder
2 tblspn desiccated Coconut or chopped Coconut flakes
Large Bunch Coriander, chopped
300ml Coconut milk (100ml for quinoa and 200ml for curry sauce)
1 tspn Mustard Seeds
1 tablespn or 1 portion of korma curry paste
4 thick slices of tofu, firm or pressed
Large handful green beans (enough for 4)

In a Colander rinse the quinoa really well then place in a saucepan with the water and turmeric, stir then put a lid on. Heat on a medium heat for 20 minutes untill all the water is absorbed. Check it quite often as you don’t want it to stick to the bottom of the pan.

While the quinoa is cooking place a sauce pan on a medium – high heat and add the mustard seeds and dry fry untill they begin to pop, this releases their flavour.

Once the quinoa is cooked take off the heat and then stir in the curry leaf powder, coconut flakes, mustard seeds, fresh coriander and 100ml of coconut milk untill everything is well combined. Taste and season with a little salt if you want

Put the green beans in a saucepan or steamer and cook.

Meanwhile put the frying pan back on the medium heat and add the korma paste, fry for 2 minutes and then add the coconut milk and stir. Add the tofu slices to the pan and cook for around 12 minutes turning the tofu only once if possible. It is ready when the sauce has thickened and the tofu is hot.

I always get a bit nervous cooking foods such as curries and using spices because I haven’t ever had the chance to travel and learn about the cuisine so these sorts of dishes are just created from what I think goes nicely together. I liked this dish because of the strong curry leaf flavoured quinoa against the creamy, soft and mildly spices tofu.

ps I can’t believe it, I have managed to do over 20 posts for Vegan MoFo so far! Knowing that I had to post much more than usual has actually been fun because I’ve posted about things which before I would have thought might be boring. Such as brands of sausages Id like to try…which actually had the most views of the week! so I think after Vegan MoFo is over I will keep relaxed about my posting schedule and enjoy just sharing more.

Curry Leaf Powder: Friday Challenge!

A couple of weeks ago I used curry leaves in a plantain and Mango curry. The leaves were used to flavour the sauce but were then removed before eating because they are quite tough yet full of flavour. I always think it’s a shame to throw anything away even if it has been used in some way, so I did a little research into curry leaves and I discovered that they are actually very good for you.

“Curry leaves contain iron, fiber and vitamins, including vitamin A and vitamin B. Curry leaves are extremely high in antioxidants, plant sterols, amino acids, glycosides, proteins and flavanoids” (source: Live Strong)

Curry leaf powder has many medicinal properties including -

• A good remedy for nausea and indigestion. Extract juice of curry leaves, squeeze a lime and add a pinch of sugar.

• Chew a few leaves every day to lose weight

• Curry leaves are also known to improve eyesight, so make sure you do not throw away the leaves while eating. It is also believed to prevent cataract.

• Curry leaves are also good for hair growth and colour. If you don’t like its raw taste, you can buy the curry leaf powder widely available in the market and have it with dosa or hot rice. You can also make it at home. This will prevent pre mature greying of hair.

•   Alternatively, you can also add a few curry leaves to your hair oil and boil it for a few minutes. Applying this hair tonic will keep your hair healthy.

(Source: The Times of India)

So I wondered what was the best way to consume the leaf to get maximum benefit. A lot of the sources talk about curry leaf essence but I also found out that you can turn curry leaves into a powder and stir them into rice or use the powder to flavour fish and meats. Perfect! A very traditional recipe is mixed with dry roasted Channa dal like in this recipe by ‘Umas Kitchen Experiments‘ but I like to keep things simple so I have just made a very basic curry leaf powder.

I will be using this powder in my Spices challenge own recipe which hopefully I will post this weekend! It needs a second test run

 

Curry Leaves pre roasting

For this I used 1 bag of curry leaves which was approx 1 and a half cups or a very large handful. First wash and dry the leaves and then spread the curry leaves out onto a baking tray and pre heat the oven to around 180c.

Dry roast in the oven for around 8 – 10 minutes, keep an eye on them because they go from perfect to burnt VERY quickly! Once roasted (they will go crispy and a brown colour) then leave to cool.

In a blender add the dried curry leaves, 2 red chillies, garlic powder and blitz untill it is a fine powder.

Do not make the mistake I did and open the lid of the blender, stick your nose in and sniff hard! I was uncontrollably sneezing and coughing for around 10 minutes this is seriously potent stuff!! I stupidly decided to give it another sniff before cooking with it a few days later and again I was sneezing for ages (around 12 sneezes!). so I say cook with it but yeah dont stick your face in it!

Two Curry Pastes (Jamie Oliver Recipes): Friday Challenge!

I decided to do curry pastes this week because although I was learning by cooking with spices I wanted to really get to grips with mixing spices and the different effects of different flavours.

I have made the odd curry paste here and there but it’s always been very basic, and I have of course blended spices before but I’ve always been safe and stuck to ‘paprika and chilli powder’ or ‘ground cumin and coriander’ so it was fun to haul all of my spices out of the cupboard and use a bit of everything! I’m one of those people who will go and buy the spices needed for a recipe but then they just get put back in the cupboard and mostly forgotten. Spices like fenugreek  and cloves haven’t seen the light of day for quite a while in my kitchen. Luckily that meant I already had everything I needed for these curry pastes, all I had to buy was groundnut oil!

My random collection of spices – some posh ones in jars, some market ones in bags!

I found some recipes on Jamie Oliver’s website (click here) and decided to try them, I don’t know about you but I have never made a bad Jamie recipe. He has a perfect mix of recipes being impressive, delicious, simple and wholesome…LOVE HIM!

First I started with a mild Korma and then I made a much spicier Vindaloo. I wanted to see what ingredients were used to either tone it down or spice it up.

Korma Curry Paste

Base Ingredients: Garlic Cloves, Fresh Root ginger
Whole Spices: Cumin Seeds, Coriander Seeds
Ground Spices: Cayenne Pepper, Garam Masala,
Mild Flavours: Desiccated Coconut, Ground Almonds
Wet Ingredients: Ground Nut Oil, Tomato Puree
Fresh Ingredients: Green Chillies, Fresh Coriander
Seasoning: Sea Salt

I’ve split the ingredients down into the ‘base ingredients’ which are in every curry paste recipe I’ve seen so far and the base of most curries. The Whole spices have to be toasted in a dry frying pan before being ground and the aroma was amazing. Use your nose to know when they are done, the smell will hit you! This recipe only uses two other spices and although they are not exactly mild, they are still out numbered by the mild flavours of the coconut and almonds.

Not only do the coconut and almonds give it a gorgeous nutty flavour, but they also give it a much thicker texture than the vindaloo. I can imagine this will be lovely and thick when added to coconut milk!
Ground nut oil has a very mild flavour too which is perfect for the curry pastes as you want it to just bind the flavours not take over. It suits Indian cooking very well.

A Spicier, Deeper coloured Vindaloo Curry Paste

Base Ingredients: Garlic Cloves, Fresh Root ginger
Whole Spices: Black Pepper, Cloves, Coriander Seeds, Fennel Seeds, Fenugreek Seeds
Ground Spices: Turmeric
Spicy Flavours: Dried Whole Chillies
Wet Ingredients: Ground Nut Oil, Tomato Puree
Fresh Ingredients: Red Chillies, Fresh Coriander
Seasoning: Sea Salt

This recipe uses a lot more whole spices that need to be toasted to release the flavour and aroma with only turmeric as the ground spice (which I think would be to add colour?). I added 4 dried chillies with all the seeds so I knew this was going to be really spicy and it was! It was a much wetter paste and would suit being mixed with tomatoes and fresh vegetables to balance out the spice.

The black pepper adds a nice kick too. I love black pepper and forget that it is used a spice and not a seasoning! I really enjoyed using my pestle and mortar, it all looked so pretty when slightly smashed up! Also as you are leaning over you get hit with the amazing aroma of all the mixed spices as you are grinding them, something you wouldn’t get in a food processor! (although it did make me sneeze quite a bit!)

Beautiful Fennel Seeds, Coriander Seeds, Cloves

I’m not actually going to be cooking with these today I have just made them for the purpose of this post so I looked up how to store them and found out you can freeze curry paste! This makes sense since there’s nothing really un-freezable in them. I used an ice cube tray to portion it then wrapped the ice cube tray in foil to protect it. One cube for a small curry and a couple for batch cooking.

Do you make your own curry pastes? Did you know you cold freeze them? Whats your favourite curry? (mines a Kashmir with lychee in it!)

Plantain and Mango Curry (Simon Rimmer Accidental Vegetarian recipe): Friday Challenge!

Nigella Seeds and Curry Leaves are the spices in this mild curry

 

I chose this recipe because I had never used Nigella seeds or Curry leaves before and I was really curious to see what they were like. The recipe is from Simon Rimmer’s vegetarian cookbook ‘The Accidental Vegetarian’ which you can buy here. I haven’t cooked a lot out of it, mainly because my interest is captured by photos and there aren’t many, but everything I have tried has been delicious.

I’m not sure if I made it completely correctly because he describes it as “bright yellow” but mine was more of a pale yellow. I think I added too much yoghurt! Putting the colour to one side it was delicious and the mango was balanced out by the firmer more savoury plaintains.

First you cook the plantain in water with turmeric and once drained they go this beautiful yellow colour -

Bright Yellow Plantain!

The rest of the ingredients were turmeric, nigella seeds, onion, chillis, curry leaves, ginger, yoghurt (I used soya) and mango. Nigella seeds are also called Black onion seeds however they are unrelated to the onion! They are seeds from a herb which bring out a slightly nutty flavour and are good when used sparingly. I love the way they contrast with the creamy yellow sauce. You have to fry them in a little oil first until they pop (kind of like mustard seeds) to get the full flavour.

Curry leaves have also been described as having a slightly nutty flavour so I assume this means they are a good pairing with nigella seeds. It was a bit frustrating because the recipe doesn’t say whether you take the leaves out or not, I tried nibbling on one and it was hard so I googled it and most people say you must remove them from the curry before serving so I did. I’m wondering if like a bay leaf they could be used in a stock to give it a spicy twist!

Mango and Plantain Curry

I have loads of curry leaves back but they can be frozen in an airtight container for a couple of months so I’m definitely going to see what other recipes there are. I think their flavour is very subtle and more of an underlying tone to the curry.

What I have learnt about spices:
Nigella spices are more pungeant and should be used sparingly to enhance a dish, they also look pretty! Curry leaves are more subtle and you can use a lot of them (this recipe uses 25!) they help build the base flavour and should be removed before eating. ~
I really love fruits in a curry and mango was a new one for me! I also like lychees in a curry

Raw Masala Carrot Dip (Leon Naturally Fast Food recipe): Friday Challenge!

Raw Masala Carrot dip with crudites

I decided to focus on spices for October’s Friday Challenge, I have my favourite spices which I use all the time but there are so many I have never tried and wouldn’t know how to blend together. I used a recipe from the LEON; Naturally Fast Food cookbook. It’s such a brilliant book with hundreds of recipes and ideas, so much to look at you can easily lose an afternoon browsing through.

When I think of spices I think of hot, comforting curries but then I stumbled across this recipe which was a cold raw dish and I was extremely interested to see how that could work and whether I would like it or not. I have always “sweated down” the spices with onions etc to bring out the flavours and I was worried that using them without cooking would taste powdery or too one-dimensional. As it turns out it was delicious and I did like it, although I didn’t have any tahini so it was quite sweet. I think if I made it again I would make sure I had tahini to balance out the juices from the orange and lemon.

My favourite crudite to dip in was celery, I found cucumber a bit watery and carrot abit carroty!

The dip is made from carrots, cumin (one of my favourite spices), Garam Masala (a spice mix I have never tried before), lemon juice, orange juice, onion, fresh ginger, dates, olive oil, coriander and raw tahini (which I didn’t have but will add next time!).

Garam Masala is a spice mix made up of cumin, bay, cloves, ginger, cardamom, cinnamon and coriander which have been roasted and then ground and blended to make a dark coloured rich smelling spice… but you can buy it pre made in jars from the super market, luckily! It goes perfectly with the sweet carrots and wasn’t too spicy either. It made the dish very fragrant and fresh which is surprising for a spicy recipe.

The recipe calls to blend untill smooth and I got it as smooth as I could in my very old blender but I actually quite liked the texture a bit rougher, more of a rustic dip, And the colour is just beautiful!

Fresh colours make this dish perfect to serve up at a party!

What I have learnt about spices:
I was so impressed to find a recipe which uses a spice I have never tried before AND it’s vegan and raw, which are two things I’m really into at the moment. I learnt that spice does not equal curry and you can use spice instead to create fragrance and interest in a cold dish. I also learnt from looking at loads of recipes trying to find something to cook that most recipes use a blend of spices and do not just concentrate on one particular spice. I think by the end I will have quite an extensive spice collection in my cupboard.

What’s you favourite spice? 

 

Coconut, Cherry and Dark Chocolate Cake

I know it’s not the end of the month but today I made my own recipe of a cake and had to share it! I might try another of my ideas next week or I may call it a day on the cakes because I am having to visit the gym more frequently

Coconut cake with a cherry and dark chocolate layer topped with flaked almonds and brown sugar

I absolutely loved the Bakewell cake I made last week with the fruits layered in between the cake sponge mix. I decided to take this idea but put my own flavours into it, Cherries are at the end of their season and I picked up a large bag from my local market for cheap, if you can’t get cherries any more and don’t want to wait untill next summer then any berry would work just as well. Preferably a sweeter berry such as a raspberry or strawberry.

I got the idea for the brown sugar topping from a comment left by Loustar on my courgette and lemon cake and I loved it, so much nicer than a sweet icing (which this cake definitely did not need) and a bit more interesting than icing sugar. When I sprinkled the brown sugar on top it looked beautiful like glitter! This topping is completely optional but does look so rustic and pretty.

Love the beautiful cherries piled on top!

I had enjoyed the flavours of the ground almonds in the BBC Bakewell recipe and I decided that with the rich chocolate and cherries I would also need an element of the cake which would break through those flavours. I decided on desiccated coconut because it is quite earthy and would top off the chocolate beautifully (any one else love bounty bars??)

I also couldn’t help but pile flaked almonds on the top for that crunch! This topping is also optional but delicious, maybe it would also work with the coconut sprinkled on top!

The cherries and chocolate ooze out from in between the cake sponge

Makes 1 cake to serve however many you fancy!

140g Unsalted Butter
140g Caster Sugar
140g Self Raising flour
70g desiccated Coconut (not the sweetened variety)
3 Medium Sized Eggs
300g unpitted cherries
50g Dark Chocolate chips (or grated chocolate if you’re using a bar of chocolate)
Brown Sugar for decoration

NB: Pitting the cherries is a very mundane job if you don’t have a fancy little gadget that does it for you. I found halving the cherry then digging the stone out of one side was the easiest and quickest. Put a handful of whole cherries to one side to decorate the top.

Pre heat the oven to 170c (fan oven) and butter/ line a 22cm/ 9 inch diameter cake tin. Lining it is annoyingly time-consuming for someone inpatient like me but if you are wanting to take it out of the tin easily this is an important part of the process.

In a large bowl cream the butter and sugar using an electric whisk (you can use a food processor if you have one but I don’t so I find that putting a clean tea towel over a bowl will help stop the mix flying everywhere. It’s insanely unhealthy but also impossible not to just dip a finger in at this point! but yes maybe don’t eat the mix quite yet!

Once the butter and sugar is light and fluffy sift in the flour and add the sugar, coconut and eggs. Mix well untill everything is combined and you have a moist cake batter.

Tip half of the cake mixture into the cake tin and spread out to form one even layer. Cover with a layer of pitted cherries and evenly sprinkle over the chocolate chips then top the whole lot with the rest of the cake mixture and gently smooth it down using a spatula or the back of a spoon (or your finger) so that the cherries are completely covered. At this point if you are using the flaked almonds then sprinkle those over.

Put on the middle shelf of your oven for 30 minutes. Check the cake is cooked but inserting a knife or poker and if it comes out clean then the cake is done. It should also be golden on top.

Leave it too cool in the tin then remove and place on a wire rack untill it is completely cooled. Sprinkle with brown sugar and pile some fresh cherries on top.

surprise colours when you slice into the cake

Blackberry Bakewell Cake (BBC Goodfood recipe): Friday Challenge!

I can’t believe I have gone from only making a very small handful of un successful cakes to now baking good cakes every week! Is it because I have more patience now to follow a recipe? or because I really want to learn this time? Whatever it is I am really enjoying it and have a feeling it may be something I continue to practise, especially over the christmas period! (I know I did it – September and I’m thinking about christmas!)

The cake before being sliced to reveal the fruits

So this cake is actually named “Raspberry Bakewell cake” but I have a freezer full of blackberries from my garden so it seemed this was a perfect opportunity to use them. I think the cake was delicious with blackberries, slightly less sweet than a raspberry maybe but a lovely subtle match to the almond flavours. You can get the recipe by following this link

It uses a mix of self raising flour and ground almonds to give it a more crumbly texture and a lovely almond flavour then it is topped with flaked almonds to give it a little crunch. I had thought the flaked almonds would burn on the top of the cake however they came out just lightly toasted which was a relief.

Once sliced in to you can see the layer of fresh blackberries in the middle of the sponge

What I liked about this cake was that the outside was a little crunchy and the outside layer of cake went abit crispy, then the inside is beautifully moist and crumbly with the sweet fruits giving so much flavour. I really think this is be far the best cake I have made so far!

It is very simple to create this layered fruit effect, simply make a cake batter and pour half into a lined cake tin, cover the mix with a single layer of fruits and then top with the remaining cake mixture, top with flaked almonds and bake in the oven. The main difficulty I had was trying to spread the cake mixture over the top of the berries without moving all the berries or ending up with some berries on the top. Some poked out of the side but when I looked at the original picture they had the same effect so I’m happy!

It’s a natural way to bring colour to a cake and it would look beautiful served at any tea party. I’d like to try it with pears or apricots or apples with a toffee sauce, the ideas are endless!

Soo pretty inside the cake!

What I have learnt about Cake?
You can mix different types of flour with ground almonds to create a more crumbly texture with a slightly more natural rustic flavour. Also adding fruits such as berries in the middle of the cake mix makes it moist but not as wet as the courgette cake I previously attempted.
I was also really happy with the effect of the flaked almonds, I have loads left over from this recipe so I will definitely be using those again soon!

Oh I also really really liked the lack of icing in this recipe, I’m not a fan of icing at all and would rather get the sweetness from fruits as done in this recipe

Marbled Chocolate and Sponge cake: Friday Challenge

My Friday Challenge has become a bit of a Sunday Challenge. There is just something about baking, it feels more natural to bake a cake after a nice lazy sunday morning when your feeling relaxed and you have a day free from distractions. Also it feels more accepted to have a slice of cake…or two…on a weekend rather than during the week!

A slice of pretty marbled cake AKA Zebra cake

I saw this technique when browsing pinterest for cake ideas and it looks so simple yet impressive I really had to try it, I followed the link back to a great blog called My Cake School where I found a visual tutorial. The recipes I found all used instant cake mixes, which I was very tempted by, however this challenge is to help me learn to bake so I made my own cake mix.

I decided to dip into my Delia Smith “Complete Cookery Course” which I knew would have a simple sponge recipe I could adapt for this marbled technique. I used the “All in One Sponge” which was so easy to make. I’m also starting to notice that cake recipes use equal measures of flour, sugar and butter so I feel I could begin to put together my own recipe.

Ok so here is how I made the cake:

Split the cake mix in half and add melted chocolate and cocoa powder to one half

Place a scoop of the sponge mix in the tin and then a scoop of chocolate cake mix in the middle

Place another scoop of plain sponge mix on top of the chocolate. Continue this alternating the two mixes untill it is all used up and the cake has spread out to fill the tin

Mine’s not beautiful round rings but you get the idea of what you are looking for

I think my cake mix was a little too thick to allow it to smoothly begin to spread as I added each layer, I would suggest using a looser thin cake mix. Also I really liked the chocolate flavours but you could also experiment with different colours!

Marbled/ Zebra Cake

I don’t think the chocolate flavour came through massively but over all it was a light, sweet sponge. Also I preferred it with no icing, instead I added some fresh strawberries to add some moisture and fresh sweetness. So much nicer than sugary icing!

Frosted Courgette and Lemon Cake (BBC Goodfood): Friday Challenge

I’ve once again dived into the foodie world of BBC Good Food to find some inspiring recipes for my Friday Challenge. I originally was going to make a Twix and Banana cake from a cookbook I have at home but my dad gave me a big bag of vegetables from his garden including some big courgettes so I decided to incorporate those into this weeks cake challenge.

Look at the size of it! I only needed half for my cake

I’ve always loved the idea of using vegetables in baking, I’ve seen beetroot and chocolate cakes, parsnip breads, potato scones and now courgette cake. The recipe can be found following ‘this link’. The recipe had good reviews with some good tips on how to prepare the courgettes however when I made it I don’t think it worked quite to plan.

The recipe calls for you to put the butter, sugar, grated and drained courgettes and other ingredients into a bowl and beat until a creamy batter, but mine became really wet and the butter separated from everything else. I decided to drain some of the liquid out of the bowl and carried on beating but it was still far too wet so in the end I just added the flours anyway and carried on.

A slice of the cake – you can see the courgette but it’s not a strong taste!

This is probably why my cakes are quite flat but they actually tasted amazing and the texture of the cake was crumbly yet moist. The lemon flavour is quite intense because of the glaze and the lemon in the icing but it wasn’t too sweet against the actual cake mixture. I think I will definitely make this again however next time I will make sure I have drained my courgettes completely to avoid another soggy batter mix. I also have a feeling that home grown courgettes would be more watery than shop bought but that’s just a theory.

What I have learnt about cakes:
When adding something like a vegetable or fruit to a cake mixture the level of moisture can effect the texture of the crumb, too wet and you end up with a very dense moist cake. Drain the grated courgette as much as you can! I also learnt that adding a glaze to the cake as it cools can really lift the flavour balance and add more moisture (not that this cake needed that!)

Ok so next week would normally be my own recipe but I’ve been enjoying making cakes and I still have loads to learn so I’m going to continue it for another month! The not only can I really practise the cake I want to make, I can also take my time with it and make it perfect!