cakes... savory and sweet

cakes... how many different recipes are there? i have absolutely no idea, but i m guessing hundreds, if not more.

there are the classics; like Victoria sponges, pound cakes, angel food cakes, devil food cakes, chocolate cakes, fruit and nut cakes, full on or gluten-free... oh, i could go on and on.

and i m sure every country, every family, every grandmother, mother, daughter (and let s be fair, granddad, father, and son) has a special favorite recipe.

i haven t found my absolute top cake yet... but that means i get to bake and bake until i do, yay!

we ve been having a very fitful summer, a true 'kwakkelzomer' as we often say in Belgium.

so baking something with summery ingredients and flavors can actually bring the sun into the house.

just like this recipe which i adapted from the july-august 2011 edition of Saveurs.

COURGETTE CAKE WITH FETA, MINT AND PINE NUTS

INGREDIENTS:

1 large courgette
100 gr feta cheese
2 eggs
150 gr self-raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
50 ml olive oil
50 gr pine nuts
handful of mint leaves, chopped at the last minute
salt and pepper

METHOD:

1. pre-heat the oven to 180°C and prepare a long cake tin by buttering and lightly flouring it, or lining with baking parchment
2. grate the courgette, sprinkle with salt, and leave to drain for about half an hour
3. sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl and beat in the eggs and the olive oil
4. squeeze out the grated courgette and mix into the batter
5. crumble in the feta cheese, add the pine nuts and chopped mint and mix lightly
6. season with salt and pepper
7. put the mixture into the cake tin and bake for about 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean
8. leave to cool slightly in the tin before taking it out.
9. can be eaten lukewarm or cool

perfect for a light lunch!

...

now for a little indulgence.

last week, i went to my friend Alina s teahouse, My Cup of Tea, in the middle of Antwerp, and had a slice of her signature cake. WOW, wow, wow...

if you re a fan of Nutella or any other hazelnut chocolate spread, this is one for you.

Alina kindly let me copy the recipe, which came from a little book called 'Taart, Cake & Muffins' which was translated from '101 Cakes & Bakes' by Mary Cadogan...

enough said, here it is, definitely a recipe to be shared, it s just too scrumptious.

NUTELLA AND CINNAMON CAKE

INGREDIENTS:

175 gr unsalted butter
90 gr fine white caster sugar
85 gr dark brown sugar (for a richer flavor and moister texture)
3 eggs
4 tablespoons milk
200 gr self-raising flour
1 teaspoon baking powder, optional
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3-4 rounded tablespoons Nutella or other hazelnut chocolate spread
50 gr hazelnuts, chopped (i used pecans because i didn t have the hazelnuts)

METHOD:

1. pre-heat the oven to 175-180°C and prepare a 20-22 cm round cake tin
2. if you have a KitchenAid or Magimix mixer (or any such mixer), just put everything (EXCEPT the Nutella and the nuts) into the bowl at once, start mixing on slow, then add a few notches to the speed and mix until very light and fluffy...
3. however, i only have an electric hand-held mixer, so i first softened the butter, added the sugar and started beating until that was quite creamy and fluffy
4. one by one, i added the eggs and then the milk
5. once that was well beaten, i sifted in the flour, the baking powder and the cinnamon and mixed again until it was really quite light
6. i then added the nuts
7. then i filled the cake tin about 2/3 full and gently distributed the 3-4 tablespoons of Nutella on top of that

8. finish with the rest of the cake batter
9. bake for about 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean

10. leave to cool before serving (which i did with a drizzle of cream...)

more-ish!

and now i shall continue on my quest, i don t care if i ever find the holy grail, the journey itself will be fun enough.