Nigella’s Zucchini Cake
This lovely cake is from one of my favorite cookbooks, How to Be a Domestic Goddess by Nigella Lawson. She is very reassuring in her description of this cake that the strange main ingredient, zucchini, does indeed make for good cake. I believed her. After all, I am a big fan of zucchini bread.
As far as making the cake, it’s really rather simple. There are several separate components to make, but it all came together rather easily and quickly. After I had the cake batter made, I began to doubt Nigella’s allegiance to this cake. I soldiered on, however, and had a beautiful cake to show for it in the end.
I wish I could tell you that I loved this cake. Quite simply, I didn’t care for it. That being said, I should also make a point that Quinn really, really liked it. We decided that our difference of opinion could be chalked up to the heavy citrus flavor. He’s a much bigger fan of lime, lemon, orange, etc. than I ever thought about being.
As I said, this cake is indeed lovely. It is not my intention to dissuade you from making it. If you like strong citrus flavors, then dive in and make it. As for me, I think I’ll stick with some of my tried and true favorites… like chocolate.
Nigella’s Zucchini Cake
from How to Be a Domestic Goddess
Cake
|
Preheat oven to 350 °F. Coarsely grate the zucchini (unpeeled) with a box grater. Place in a colander to drain. Beat eggs, oil, and sugar until creamy. Stir in flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt until well combined. Stir in the zucchini and then the dates. Pour into two 8″-round cake pans that have been sprayed/greased/lined. Bake for 30 minutes or until slightly browned.Cool in pans on a rack for 5 to 10 minutes. Then, remove from pans and continue cooling on rack. |
Lime Curd
|
Melt butter in a heavy medium-sized saucepan. Add the remaining ingredients and whisk to a custard over medium-low heat. Allow to cool completely. |
Icing & Topping
|
Beat cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar and combine well. Next, stir in lime juice.To assemble cake, place one layer on serving plate. Spread lime curd onto cake. Next, place second layer on top of lime curd. Spread with icing. Top with pistachios. |
