Cardamom Pistachio Carrot Cake Food

CARDAMOM-PISTACHIO CARROT CAKE

Steps:

• Cake:
• Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 350°F. Lightly coat bottom and sides of a 9"-diameter cake pan with oil. Line bottom of pan with a round of parchment paper and smooth to eliminate any air bubbles.
• Grate carrots on the large holes of a box grater. Measure out 2½ cups (lightly packed; 250 g); reserve remaining carrots for another use (like raita!).
• Set a fine-mesh sieve over a measuring glass and place next to stove. Heat butter in a medium saucepan over medium until foaming, about 2 minutes. Add pistachios and cook, stirring often, until butter browns and nuts smell toasty, about 5 minutes. (Butter will get very foamy and it will be hard to see what's going on, so once the foam is golden brown, remove pan from heat every 10 seconds to check how the nuts are browning.) Pour mixture through prepared sieve, scraping in all of the browned bits; set nuts and butter aside.
• Crack eggs into a large bowl; add brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cardamom, cinnamon, and salt. Using an electric mixer on high speed, beat 3 minutes (mixture should be thick, pale, and increased in volume). Decrease speed to medium-high and gradually stream in reserved brown butter (including browned bits); beat until combined. Coarsely chop reserved pistachios. Using a rubber spatula, fold in flour until almost completely combined, then add nuts and carrots and continue to fold until everything is incorporated. Scrape batter into prepared pan; smooth surface. Place pan on a clean smooth surface and give it a fast 360-degree spin (this pushes the batter up the sides of the pan and minimizes doming during baking).
• Bake cake until deeply browned and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 50-55 minutes. Let cake cool in pan. Run a small offset spatula or butter knife around perimeter of cake to loosen. Place a plate upside down over cake and invert cake onto plate (leave flat side up). Remove parchment paper.
• Do Ahead: Cake can be baked 1 day ahead. Store tightly wrapped at room temperature.
• Glaze and assembly:
• Place a small plate in the freezer. Cook carrot juice, cream, granulated sugar, and salt in a small saucepan over high heat (do not stir) until thick like lava, 8-10 minutes. Mixture will initially bubble and foam vigorously and look like it's going to boil over, but it won't! Don't be tempted to reduce the heat; the bubbling will subside and mixture will thicken. You want it to be thick enough to stick to the cake, but do not let it brown. Test glaze by putting a small dollop onto the cold plate: When you run your finger through the glaze, it should leave a defined trail.
• Once the glaze is thick enough, remove pan from heat and stir in butter. Let cool until you can comfortably hold your finger in it (if it's too hot, it will run right off the cake), about 15 minutes.
• Stir glaze well and pour over center of cake, nudging to the edges with offset spatula or butter knife. Pop any air bubbles with a toothpick. Let glaze cool at least 10 minutes before slicing cake.

DATE, PISTACHIO AND CARDAMOM CAKE

Steps:

• Coarsely chop the dates in a food processor. Transfer to a 32-ounce jar. Add the brandy, pistachios and ginger. Seal, and then shake until well combined. Store the mixture in a cool, dry place away from direct sunlight for 3 days, shaking once a day. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Spray an 8- by 3-inch round springform pan with cooking spray and line the bottom and sides with wax paper. Have the wax paper go a little taller than the sides of the pan.
• In a small bowl, sift together the flour, cardamom and coriander (if using), and reserve. In a stand mixer, or using a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Gradually whisk in the eggs, one at a time, beating in between additions, until combined. Add the molasses, vanilla extract, salt and brandied fruit mixture, and gently beat until well combined. Add the sifted flour mixture, a little at a time. When it is all mixed in, beat at high speed for about 10 seconds. Pour into the prepared springform pan. Place a metal brownie pan on the floor of your oven. Fill with water; this will keep your cake moist. Pop the cake into the middle of your oven, and cook for 3 to 3 1/4 hours, turning once halfway through. You'll know the cake is cooked when a skewer pushed into the center of the cake, all the way to the bottom, comes out clean. Remove from the oven, and allow to rest in the pan on a cooling rack. Once completely cool, remove the cake from the pan, but keep covered in the wax paper to keep moist.
• To serve: Make a snowflake out of a piece of paper like you did in primary school (you can also use a doily for this). Place it gently on top of the cake. Spoon a little powdered sugar in a strainer and dust the surface of the cake. Remove the paper to reveal a powdered sugar snowflake. You can serve with a dollop of whipped cream and minced pistachios too if you like.

BLUEBERRY & PISTACHIO CAKE WITH CARDAMOM CREAM

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Lightly grease and line the base of 2 x 20cm sandwich tins with baking parchment. Grease the tins again, dust with a little caster sugar and a little flour, then tap out any excess.
• Put the eggs and sugar in a heatproof bowl and, using an electric whisk, mix briefly to combine. Place the bowl over a pan of steaming water and continue to whisk until the mixture is pale and thick - when the whisk is lifted, the mixture should leave a trail on the surface lasting about 5 secs. Remove the bowl from the pan and continue beating for 2 mins.
• Continue to whisk the mixture while trickling the melted butter around the edge of the bowl. Sift in the flour and ground pistachios, very gently give the mixture 2-3 folds, then add the blueberries and fold again, being careful not to knock out all the air. Divide the mixture between the tins and bake for 25-30 mins, until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
• To make the filling, beat the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy. Add the cardamom, then drizzle in the cream. Continue to beat until light and airy.
• Cool cakes in their tins for 10 mins, then turn out onto a wire rack. Remove lining paper when completely cooled. Sandwich the cakes together with the cardamom cream, top with some more, then decorate with pistachios and blueberries.

CARDAMOM SPICED CARROT CAKE

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 350°F and arrange the rack in the middle.
• Coat two 8-inch cake pans with butter and flour, and tap out any excess flour. Set aside.
• Combine flour, baking powder, cardamom, cinnamon, baking soda, ginger, and salt in a large bowl, and whisk to aerate and break up any lumps. Set aside.
• Combine eggs, sugar, oil, buttermilk, and vanilla in a large bowl, and whisk until eggs are broken up and mixture is thoroughly combined. Using a rubber spatula, fold in flour mixture until just combined. Fold in carrots and walnuts until evenly mixed.
• Divide batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 50 to 60 minutes.
• Remove cakes from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool, about 15 minutes. Run a knife around the perimeter of each, and turn cakes out onto the rack to cool completely.
• For the Frosting:.
• Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, and beat at low speed until sugar is incorporated.
• Increase speed to medium high and beat until frosting is light and whipped, about 3 to 4 minutes.
• For the Assembly:.
• To frost, place a cake layer on an 8-inch cardboard round, a tart-pan bottom, or a cake plate. Evenly spread about 1/3 of the frosting over the top of the layer. Stack the second layer, and evenly spread another 1/3 of the frosting over the top and sides of the whole cake. (Don't worry about looks at this point-this is just a crumb layer, and it will be covered up later.)
• Place in the refrigerator until frosting is set up and slightly hard, about 15 minutes.
• Remove from the refrigerator and spread remaining frosting over the top and sides of the cake, ensuring it's as even as possible. Serve.