Hey guys!

Hope you’re well and had a nice start to your week?

This weekend, for mother’s day, I combined some of my mum’s favourite flavours to create this little number:

Pistachio, rose and cardamom.

I definitely had a mad scramble at Waitrose the night before to grab the cardamom, rose water and rose petals. I never use them in my day to day cooking.

So pretty!

^ I affectionately renamed it ‘the Shrek cake.’

A moist, pistachio and cardamom flavoured cake, sandwiched together with a homemade raspberry rose jam and rose water infused whipped cream frosting.

When I cracked open the cake box, my brother inhaled and with the hugest grin, responded with “it smells like India!”

For me, it’s really going back to my roots, nostalgic of summer holidays spent visiting family in India. The flavours evoke memories of exploring the hot, dusty streets on some kind of errand and stopping for a break, slipping into an air-conditioned little cafe to indulge in a kulfi or a falooda.

Enjoy,

– Kay

Ingredients

Cake

• 165g salted butter, softened at room temperature
• 300g caster sugar
• 3 medium eggs
• 200g flour
• 3/4 tsp cardamom powder
• 85g ground unsalted pistachios (I bought them whole then whizzed them in my food processor)
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 tbsp rose water
• 1 drop green food colouring
• 180ml buttermilk

Raspberry rose jam (makes a whole jar of jam, of which you need about half, feel free to reduce the recipe if you don’t want some spare jam for your morning toast!)

• 250g raspberries
• 200g jam sugar
• 1.5 tbsp rose water
• 1 tbsp lemon juice

Frosting

• 600ml double cream
• 75g mascarpone
• 50g icing sugar, sifted
• 1 drop red food colouring
• 1.5tbsp rose water

Decoration

• Edible rose petals
• Crushed pistachios

Instructions

Raspberry rose jam

1. Add the raspberries to a medium saucepan. Place on a medium heat until the raspberries begin releasing their juices and use the back of a wooden spoon to help break them down.
2. Once completely squashed, add the remaining ingredients and allow to gently boil for 5 mins. You can test if it’s done by placing a teaspoon of the mixture to a plate then refrigerating for 1min. If it wrinkles when you push it with your finger, it will set perfectly.
3. Add the jam to a glass jar, seal and place in the fridge to cool completely. If the jar is sterilised, this will keep for a few months.

Cake

1. Preheat oven to gas mark 5. Grease and line 3 x 7-inch baking tins.
2. Begin by creaming together the butter and sugar.
3. One by one, add the eggs, mixing well to combine each time.
4. Mix together the dry ingredients – flour, cardamom, pistachios and baking soda in a bowl.
5. Mix together the wet ingredients – buttermilk, green food dye and rose water.
6. Add a third of the dry ingredients to the butter mix before mixing well to combine.
7. Add half of the wet ingredients to the butter mix before mixing well to combine.
8. Repeat until all ingredients are combined.
9. Split the batter equally into the prepared baking tins and bake for 25mins or until a cake tester comes out clean.
10. Remove from baking tins and cool on a wire rack.

Frosting

1. Add all the ingredients to a large bowl and whisk until lightly whipped and just holds.

Assembly

1. Smear a spoonful of frosting onto a cake board before topping with the first layer of cake.
2. Top with a couple of tablespoons of jam. Spread evenly.
3. Add a couple of spoons of frosting before spreading evenly.
4. Repeat with the second layer of cake.
5. Top with the final layer of cake and decorate the sides and top with frosting. Use a spatula to spread evenly. I opted for a rustic look with ‘naked sides.’
6. Use a toothpick to mark out the areas of the cake you want to decorate. Use a nozzle and piping bag to decorate before sprinkling over edible rose petals and crushed pistachios.
7. Store in the fridge until ready to serve.