Maunika Gowardhan

Cardamom, Rose and Pistachio Cake

Gulab Jamun cake soaked in a cardamom and rose syrup topped with crushed pistachios

Serves
6
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Cardamom, Rose and Pistachio Cake

The recipe

Ingredients

  • 60gms ground almonds
  • 150gms caster sugar
  • 225gm self raising flour
  • 6-8 green cardamom seeds only ground to a powder
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 150mls sunflower oil
  • 1 egg
  • 200mls greek yoghurt
  • Generous handful of pistachios chopped

For the syrup

  • 100mls water
  • 100gms caster sugar
  • 4 green cardamom pods
  • 1 tsp rose water

Method

  1. Preheat the oven to 180C/ 350F/ Gas Mark 4. Line a 22cm cake tin with greaseproof paper.In a mixing bowl sift the almond, sugar, flour, cardamom powder and baking powder

  2. Separately whisk the oil, egg and yoghurt together. Add this mix to the dry ingredients until you have a smooth thick batter. Add a few of the chopped pistachios to this batter leaving the rest for garnish

  3. Pour the mix in the lined cake tin and bake for 45minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool slightly until you make the syrup

  4. In a sauce pan heat the water and add the sugar and the cardamom pods. Mix and dissolve the sugar simmering on a low heat for 4-5minutes. Turn the heat off. This syrup will thicken as it cools. Add the rose water and mix

  5. Using a skewer make a few holes evenly over the cake, sit it over a plate and while its still warm pour the syrup over it. The cake will absorb the remaining syrup as it soaks up the residual from the plate. Garnish with more pistachio and dried rose petals. Serve with chai or coffee.

The story

About this recipe.

The batter for this cake is made with yoghurt and like most sweet and savoury dishes in Indian cooking; yoghurt keeps the cake fresh and also gives it a tangy flavour. I’m no expert at baking and this is the only recipe I’ve been using to bake a cake from a very young age. Also its one that always is a hit with friends and family.

For me this recipe is everything I love! You could say a Gulab Jamun in cake form really, with all the goodness of cardamom and crushed pistachio while steeping in a floral sticky syrup. Make a little extra syrup so the cake is not too dry and you can let it soak in the syrup overnight making it delicious and keeping it moist for a few days. Serve with chai or coffee for a sunny summer afternoon.

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