Delicious Seed Cake

I've used this recipe of Delia Smith's as a basis for some experimentation.

As is the recipe makes a brilliant old fashioned seed cake.

110 grams Butter

110 grams Sugar

Two eggs

150 grams wheat

25 ground almonds

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2-3 tablespoons milk

2 tablespoons caraway seeds

Some demerara sugar

Some flaked almonds

Basic batter making: Beat butter and sugar together and add the eggs. After that the wheat, baking powder and salt follows. Lastly gently add the caraway seeds and almonds into the mix. Add some milk to give the batter the right consistency (use own judgement) and drop into tin. Sprinkle demerara sugar and flaked almonds over the cake. Bake for 50-60 mins at 180°C or 350°F or until the cake is golden and the sides have started shrinking from the sides of the tin.

You can also skip the caraway seeds and add two tablespoons fresh, shredded ginger and the zest from one lime to make a very nice ginger and lime cake. In that case I recommend skipping the almond flakes on top and replace them with some lime zest.

Garbanzo Bean Chocolate Cake

From allrecipes.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 (19 ounce) can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
• 4 eggs
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar for dusting

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9 inch round cake pan.
2. Place the chocolate chips into a microwave-safe bowl. Cook in the microwave for about 2 minutes, stirring every 20 seconds after the first minute, until chocolate is melted and smooth. If you have a powerful microwave, reduce the power to 50 percent.
3. Combine the beans and eggs in the bowl of a food processor. Process until smooth. Add the sugar and the baking powder, and pulse to blend. Pour in the melted chocolate and blend until smooth, scraping down the corners to make sure chocolate is completely mixed. Transfer the batter to the prepared cake pan.
4. Bake for 40 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 to 15 minutes before inverting onto a serving plate. Dust with confectioners' sugar just before serving.

Carrot Cake by OTTOLENGHI

1 Preheat the oven to 170°C/Gas Mark 3. Grease a 20cm springform
cake tin and line the base and sides with baking parchment.

2 Sift together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and spices.
Lightly whisk the whole egg with the egg yolk.

3 Put the sunflower oil and caster sugar in the bowl of an electric
mixer fitted with the beater attachment and beat for about a minute
on a medium speed. On a low speed, slowly add the beaten egg.
Mix in the walnuts, coconut and carrot and then the sifted dry
ingredients. Don’t over mix.

4 Transfer the mixture to a large bowl. Wash and dry the mixer bowl,
making sure it is totally clean, then put the egg whites and salt in
it and whisk on a high speed until firm peaks form. Gently fold the
egg whites into the carrot mixture in 3 additions, being careful not
to over mix. Streaks of white in the mixture are okay.

5 Pour the cake mixture into the prepared tin and bake for approximately
1 hour; it could take longer. A skewer inserted in the centre should
come out dry. If the cake starts getting dark before the centre is
cooked through, cover it with foil. Let the cake cool completely and
then remove from the tin.

6 To make the icing, beat the cream cheese in a mixer until light and
smooth. Remove from the mixer. Beat the butter, icing sugar and
honey in the mixer until light and airy. Fold together the cheese and
butter mixes. Spread waves of icing on top of the cake and sprinkle
with the nuts.

Serves 6-8

• 160g plain flour
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ tsp ground cloves

• 1 large free-range egg
• 1 free-range egg yolk

• 200g sunflower oil
• 270g caster sugar
• 50g walnuts, chopped
• 50g desiccated coconut
• 135g carrot, roughly grated

• 2 free-range egg whites
• a pinch of salt

• Icing
• 175g cream cheese,
• at room temperature
• 70g unsalted butter
• 35g icing sugar
• 25g honey
• a dash of lemon juice
  
• 30g walnuts, chopped
• and lightly toasted