Thursday, September 16, 2010

Fig Cake with Rosemary



I have a mega HUGE HONKIN rosemary plant in my backyard. It often taunts me and shouts obscenities as I walk by…one time it even smacked me arse! After that scary incident I did my duty and found a new recipe that incorporates its tastiness.

So before you wrinkle your nose at rosemary and fig marrying, let me say that is quite shocking at first – People will look at you funny and then ask “what’s that I’m tasting?” You answer rosemary and they keep on eating. While odd and different I think it is quite good – and wonderful for a Sunday afternoon treat.

Delightfully lifted from FIG CAKE



INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup butter (8 tablespoons)
1 cup brown sugar
5-8 fresh, ripe figs of your choice, tips removed, sliced sideways (medium)
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped
2-3 tablespoons walnut pieces, or as many as needed
1 cup flour, sifted
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 eggs, separated
1 cup granulated sugar
4 tablespoons lemon juice
zest of 2 lemons
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract


DIRECTIONS



1. Position a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat to 350 degrees F.







2. Add butter to a 9-inch-round baking pan, and place inside of a warm oven until melted, about 5 minutes. Remove from oven, and sprinkle brown sugar evenly over the butter. Add figs, flesh side down, and sprinkle with the rosemary. Fill in the nooks and crannies with walnut pieces.


3. In a medium bowl, combine sifted flour, baking powder and salt, and stir.


4. Using a hand mixer, in a metal or glass bowl, beat egg whites at high speed until fluffy. Set aside.


5. In a separate bowl, beat egg yolks with sugar at medium speed until creamy. Add lemon juice, zest, vanilla extract, and beat well. Add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture, and beat until well combined. Fold in the egg whites with a rubber spatula. Pour cake mixture evenly over the fruit, and smooth with the spatula.








6. Bake for 40 minutes, or until cake is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Place on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Run a blunt knife around the edges of the pan to loosen the cake. Invert carefully onto a plate. Serve warm !







Have a spendid weekend.

23 comments:

Laurie {Simply Scratch} said...

Oh My WORD!! This looks fantastic!! Please save me a piece!!

Susi's Kochen und Backen said...

Very interesting recipe! The figs are gorgeous all caramelized on top and I would definitely try a piece if given the opportunity. :o)

Monet said...

This does look beautiful! It seems like this is a good week for fig cakes...yours looks like a figgy piece of heaven. Thank you for sharing!

Fun and Fearless in Beantown said...

I've never tried a fig cake before but I definitely want to try a piece of this gorgeous cake!

Julie said...

That's a beauty for sure! If you'd like me to kill that rosemary plant let me know, somehow I killed ours :D

La Bella Cooks said...

Great use of both the figs and rosemary. I never can think of ways to use the fresh figs in time and my rosemary plant is out of hand as well. Thanks for sharing the perfect recipe.

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

A fabulous combination and cake! I love your pretty plates.

Cheers,

Rosa

Jayanthy Kumaran said...

Looks utterly divine...wonderful clicks..

Tasty appetite

Eliana said...

I'm so jealous that you have a rosemary tree. Once i get my hands on a nice bunch, I will definitely whip up this cake. It looks super delish.

Susan from Food Blogga said...

I'm so happy you loved my recipe! Thanks for posting it. And I've got to use that cake quote sometime. It's genius!

Tracy said...

This looks wonderful! I LOVE rosemary so I think it sounds absolutely perfect. :-)

Ali said...

Now, you KNOW I love me some rosemary. I could definitely get down with this. In my stomach.

Val said...

I love me some figs....Come on up and sit in my kitchen and I will brew some coffee and you could bring this. YUM

megan said...

would you believe I've never had a fig before? This cakes look delicious!

Miss Meat and Potatoes said...

LOL about your rosemary bush. They can be vicious, can't they? This cake looks SO, SO good. I adore figs and rosemary and bet you have created something extraordinary here. Well worth the smack on the arse;)

aipi said...

wowwowowowow...that cake looks sinful!!!!

US Masala

Larissa said...

This looks heavenly! I love rosemary, and have always wanted to try baking with it. As crazy big as they can get, I wish I had space for a rosemary bush! I think the leaves are so pretty, and always want to have extra to spare for table decor.

Anonymous said...

this looks absolutely amazing! i have never tried baking with rosemary, and this may be the convincing factor. lovely post!

Ingrid_3Bs said...

I've never had figs and I'm thinking the way to try is in cake form. And yours is looking pretty good. Plus, I'm intrigued about the rosemary.
~ingrid

Reeni said...

That is one gorgeous fig cake! I love the rosemary - it's different but in a good way!

Beth said...

What a lovely cake. I love the idea of pairing the figs with rosemary. And I love the plate you photographed it on!

Proud Italian Cook said...

Thats one beautiful cake!

Kris Ngoei said...

This cake is a true luxury for me and I promise that I would really appreciate every bites of a single slice (if you ever offer :-)).. It is due to the fact that we can't find fresh figs in Thailand.... I can simply drool over your tempting shots :-<

Sawadee from bangkok,
Kris