MANGO AND ALMOND CAKE WITH SAFFRON
MANGO AND ALMOND CAKE WITH SAFFRON
Recipe
Seeing plump, ripe mangos in stores has inspired me to bake with them. This cake is deliciously light and perfect for the warmer weather.The chunks of sweet, juicy mango are heavenly with the unique flavour of saffron, which also lends a beautiful golden colour to the inside of the cake.
SERVES 12
FOR THE CAKE
170g butter, softened
220g caster sugar
3 organic eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
150g plain flour
100g ground almonds
2 tsp baking powder
pinch of sea salt
zest of 1 orange
¼ cup whole milk
1 tsp saffron threads
2 ripe mangos, peeled and diced into 2cm cubes
2 tbsp raw sugar
- Preheat the oven to 180ºC fan bake. Grease and line a 22cm cake tin.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until pale, light and fluffy.
- Beat in the eggs, one at a time, along with the vanilla extract. Gradually fold in the flour, ground almonds, baking powder and salt, then the orange zest.
- Into a small saucepan, place the milk and saffron threads and bring to the boil, then immediately take off the heat. Allow to steep for a minute or two, until the milk takes on a rich yellow hue.
- Cool slightly, then pour into your batter. Mix all the ingredients together. Stop your electric mixer once all the ingredients are combined, do not over mix.
- Pour the mixture into the cake tin and dot it with the mango pieces, pressing them down lightly with the back of a spoon. Sprinkle with the raw sugar.
- Bake for about 45 minutes. The cake is ready when it is golden in colour, springy to the touch and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
- Allow to cool for around 10 minutes before turning out onto a rack.
- Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place for up to three days.