Moist, delicious gluten free cardamom-rose coffee cake topped with rose syrup and edible dried rose petal topping with a slight golden hue of saffron. Baked in a loaf pan so it’s easy to share and sturdy enough to slice and save for later.
During this time I’ve been doing a lot of baking therapy, and this week I wanted to combine some traditional Iranian ingredients to make a yummy breakfast loaf to have with tea in the mornings. Seems extra fitting to share this recipe today - perfectly balanced cardamom spice and floral rose, sweet, light with the right amount of crumb and golden saffron coloring that is a delight to wake up to.
Most commonly, cardamom is used to spice both sweet and savory dishes. It is widely employed in Indian, Middle Eastern, Arabic, and Swedish cuisine. It comes in two types and is used as whole pods, seeds, or ground. Green cardamom, which are pods that have small black seeds inside; has a lightly sweet aroma and both pod and seeds are edible. Whereas, with black cardamom it is quite fragrant and has a pungent, almost smoky flavor. It is used whole to season dishes, then removed before serving. Some of my favorite Iranian sweets and pastries incorporate green cardamom and you will find a variety of Iranian pastries, sweets, and teas with this spice. In this recipe I wanted to capture the sweet flavor of the green cardamom so I used a mortar and pestle to crush the pods, removed the black seeds, and ground them down. You can use pre ground cardamom as well.
Cardamom has wonderful health benefits, some including helping soothe stomach issues, boosting your metabolism and promoting weight loss, and cardamom tea helps in flushing out toxins. My family, boyfriend, and I are big fans of a black tea label called Sadaf, which is a common tea brand found in Iranian markets in America. They make a variety of black teas ranging from loose leaf, tea bags, and large supply distributions; because us Iranians LOVE our tea! Specifically, we enjoy drinking Sadaf Tea with Cardamom which you can purchase at your local Iranian market or on Amazon.
Dried rose petals, rose water, and rose syrup are a staple in Iranian sweets and desserts. Traditionally, roses have been used in Iranian cuisine for over 3,000 years. In fact, the use of rose petals in Middle Eastern cooking is largely the product of Persian influence. Rose petals (along with other Persian staples) were adopted throughout the Middle East after Persia’s conquest by Arabs and would eventually be used in many cuisines throughout the world including Indian and Chinese food.
The flavor of rose petals differs depending on which type of rose plant produced them. They can have a floral sweetness or a tartness similar to that which comes from citrus fruit. They can also be mildly spicy. They are often intensely aromatic, which is the quality that is most valuable for cooking. I purchased this 0.3 oz. bag of dried rose petals from Suncore Foods from Amazon and I'm very happy with my purchase. The petals are aromatic and I've used them in baking and teas and will be purchasing more.
These two ingredients compliment each other well and are used in a variety of Iranian sweets, so I couldn’t wait to test out my recipe and see how it would turn out! I was pleasantly surprised that the cardamom flavor equally balanced the rose syrup and topping. The saffron coloration is lovely in person and makes this loaf stand out.
Prep Time 15 minutes. Cook time: 45 minutes. Total time 1 hour.
INGREDIENTS
Cake
1 ¾ cups gluten free baking flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 heaping tsp of baking powder
3 tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3-4 threads of saffron, grounded
¼ tsp kosher salt
¾ cups coconut oil
1 cup coconut sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
½ cup non-dairy yogurt, at room temperature
Syrup
¼ cup water
⅛ tsp dried rose petals
¼ cup confectioner sugar
1 tsp non-dairy yogurt
Topping
¼ cup dried rose petals
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat the oven to 350° F. Grease and flour a 5 x 9-inch loaf pan or line with parchment paper; set aside.
Using a mortar and pestle grind your 3-4 threads of saffron into powder form. (Trust me, a little goes a long way!)
In a medium-size bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cardamom, cinnamon, salt, and saffron.
In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, beat the coconut oil and sugar on medium speed until incorporated. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each addition scraping down the sides of the bowl if necessary.
Add the non-dairy yogurt and mix for another minute or two, until incorporated.
Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until combined.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
Bake at 350° F until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean, about 45-50 minutes.
Cool the loaf in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely.
While the loaf is cooling in the pan work on your syrup. Use a mortar and pestle to grind the petals to powder form. in a small pot combine the rose petal powder and water and boil till medium-sized bubbles start to form, and remain when syrup is stirred with a wooden spoon. Let syrup cool in a measuring cup for 2 minutes.
Transfer loaf to the cooling rack and pour the syrup across the loaf evenly.
Take your dried petal topping and sprinkle all over the loaf.
Store in a cake container or Tupperware (if using Tupperware cover the top of the lid tightly with plastic wrap). Will last for 5-7 days. Refrigerate after 3 days.
Enjoy! xx
Comentarios