Some things require cake | Sweet Basil and the Bee - Chico Enterprise-Record

When it’s beastly hot and your end-of-summer Labor Day celebration is turning out to be less than you hoped, well – sometimes you need cake. A little treat to brighten your day, something new to learn, (how to make self-rising flour and convert grams to cups for British recipes), and something sweet to look forward to.

Although a big old slab of chocolate/chocolate cake is tempting, it’s kind of heavy for this heat and after the first bite or two your interest is slaked. This situation calls for a cake that’s a bit surprising — maybe with its feet still in the summer vegetable garden, a “transitional” cake that will intrigue your taste buds and keep your fork searching for more.

Cake No. 1, Flora’s Famous Courgette Cake, is from British diva, Nigella Lawson; her notes on the recipe follow: Courgettes are, for those of you who aren’t fancy-minded (or British), your regular garden-variety, zucchini. Very normal, and very un-fancy. “If courgette cake sounds dodgy to you, think about carrot cake for a moment; this is just an adaption of that,” says Nigella. And I must say, it’s infinitely better than the humble carrot cake. And we all know that these “vegetable cakes” are really just a vehicle for cream cheese icing.

Flora’s Famous Courgette Cake

Cake measurements converted from grams and milliliters.

Ingredients:

¼ cup raisins (optional, and I didn’t use them)
1 ¼ cups courgettes (2-3)
2 eggs
8 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil
¾ cup caster sugar (caster sugar is superfine, regular is ok)
1 1/8 cup self-raising flour*
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder

Instructions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease and line 2 8-inch round tins (9-inch cake tins are more popular in the U.S., and that’s what I used – makes a flatter cake). If using raisins, place in a bowl and cover with warm water to plump them up. Rinse whole courgettes, and then grate (skin on) with the course side of a grater. If it’s too fine it turns to mush. Place eggs, oil, and sugar in bowl of electric mixer, and beat until creamy. Fold in sifted flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Stir in courgette (and raisins if using). Pour mixture into tins and bake for 30 minutes, until golden on top and firm to touch. Remove from oven and leave to cool completely before assembling. For filling, you can buy a good lemon or lime curd. I used Two English Ladies Lime Curd from S&S Produce in Chico, or if you prefer, you can make your own curd.

* Self-rising flour: for each cup of flour, whisk together with 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Make sure to whisk these ingredients together well so that the baking powder and salt are both evenly distributed within the flour.

Icing:

1 cup cream cheese, softened
½ cup confectioner’s sugar, sifted
juice 1 lime
2-3 tablespoons chopped pistachios (make sure they’re raw or your cake will get a salty edge)

Directions: Beat cream cheese with some sort of electric mixer until smooth. Gradually add confectioner’s sugar, beating continually. Add lime juice.

To assemble cake, place bottom layer on a serving plate and spread thickly with lime curd. Place 2nd cake on top carefully. Spread cream cheese over the top, and sprinkle with pistachios. I promise you, this cake will change the way you look at vegetables forever – Nigella.

Basil Chocolate Cake. (Nancy Lindahl — Contributed)

Cake No. 2 comes from Aube Giroux’ family via PBS. Aube’s an award-winning food videographer and there’s a nice video of making this cake at: “A Summer Family Recipe: Basil Chocolate Cake Kitchen Vignettes” PBS food PBS.org. Two interesting things — the recipe calls for a full cup of fresh basil and there’s no flour in the cake, so it’s gluten free. Following are Aube Giroux’ notes on her family’s Basil Chocolate Cake.

Although this cake doesn’t use a leavener, the egg whites do give it an elegant lift. But it’s not a fluffy cake and will not rise very much. Its texture is similar to a brownie, though not quite as dense, sweet and chewy. There’s no flour in this cake. It gets its bulk from ground almonds and a bit of cornstarch so it somehow manages to be rich and satisfying but also relatively light. And a little bonus for those who care is that this cake is entirely gluten-free!

Chopping the basil for this recipe does require a bit of love and attention, as fresh herbs usually do. If you’re not sure how to “chiffonade” basil, I recommend watching this helpful little video at https://youtu.be/sp5VzyGbUBU. You want to make sure your basil leaves are clean and fully dry, then make tidy stacks of leaves, rolling them like a cigar, and slice across with a very sharp knife so you get thin delicate shreds of basil. Afterwards, I cheat a bit and give a few quick chops across the strands so that they aren’t too long and stringy. Stringy basil in a cake is not so appealing. Basically, you want to chop the basil as finely as possible without mangling it. You definitely don’t want it to turn black or lose its delicate aromatic oils.

This cake is delicious simply served with a sprinkle of confectioner’s sugar and some fresh basil leaves as a garnish, but you can also pour a ganache over it for a more decadent dessert, or pile on some whipped cream and fresh berries. I’ve also served it with strawberry coulis, or a generous scoop of zesty berry sorbet. It pairs well with so many things. I find myself returning to this recipe again and again because it has few ingredients, is easy to make, and always elicits an enthusiastic reaction, no matter how it’s served. The basil just sings through. Enjoy!

Basil Chocolate Cake

The recipe calls for a whole whopping cup of chopped basil. Sprinkle confectioner’s sugar and some fresh basil leaves as a garnish or drizzle on berries. Serves eight to 10.

Ingredients:

8 oz. dark bittersweet chocolate (I like to use 4 oz. unsweetened and 4 oz. bittersweet)
1 1/2 stick unsalted butter (3/4 cup)
1 cup finely minced fresh basil, loosely packed
4 eggs, separated
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon cane sugar
1 cup ground almonds or almond flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch (or tapioca flour)
1/4 teaspoon salt
Optional garnish: 1 teaspoon confectioner’s sugar for dusting
Fresh basil leaves

Directions: Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8-inch cake pan and lightly dust it with flour. Gently heat the chocolate and butter in a double boiler, just until melted. Remove from heat and stir in the minced basil. Mix well and allow to cool slightly (not fully or it will harden).

In a large bowl, beat the 4 egg yolks with 1/2 cup of the sugar until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture turns pale yellow and forms silky ribbons when the whisk is lifted. Whisk into melted chocolate until incorporated.

Whisk together the ground almonds, cornstarch, and salt, and incorporate into chocolate mixture, mixing well.

Beat the 4 egg whites with 1 Tablespoon sugar to stiff peaks. Gently and gradually fold into chocolate mixture. Mix delicately so the whites don’t lose their spring, until fully incorporated. Immediately pour into prepared pan and bake in 350 F oven for about 35 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan for about 10 minutes, then remove and cool on a wire rack. Serve at room temperature. To garnish, dust with confectioner’s sugar, top with a few sprigs of fresh basil and serve.

Hope one of these will sweeten your day until the skies clear. Aren’t you grateful you don’t live in Los Angeles (112 degrees) or Palm Springs (122 degrees)? Little mercies abound.

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