Cold oven Fig and almond tea cake

Winters are here and it is by far my most favourite season because it is the season to bake and indulge in all sinful good things. Baking in the holiday season is such a delight and is soul therapy. The fresh produce in the markets has pushed my lazy self to whip up some bakes and enjoy them.

On a recent trip to our fruit vendor, my husband Vishal spotted fresh figs. He was quick to point them out to me but I refused saying that they will be expensive. But Vishal knowing how much I love to bake with fresh fruits urged me to buy and use them. The box of figs sat in my fridge for two days before the thought of them getting spoilt made me push myself to start baking. 

A quick browse on the net led me to this cold oven tea cake recipe. I have heard of the cold oven baking method but had never tried it. Cold oven baking method is more popular with the pound cake recipe where putting your cake in a cold oven and then adjusting the temperature is believed to help make the cake dense and achieve a more crisp crust on the top. The cake is basically baked at low temperature for a long time in a cold oven which has not been preheated. 

As weird as the method sounds, it worked wonders for my experiment. My cake was, most arguably, the best one I have ever baked. The cake does not rise much which gives it a compact dense texture and the crust on top is to die for. I cooked my fresh figs with some sugar and brandy and used them in the cake along with roasted and chopped almonds. The fresh figs on top added to the figilicious experience. Pairing the slice of cake with our evening tea was just the right thing for this weather.  

Recipe source : Hungry rabbit. I have reduced the recipe to 1/4th and adapted it to yield a 6X3" cake loaf.

Ingredients :

• 1/2 cup all purpose flour + 1 tbsp cornflour
• 1/4 cup + 2tbsp powdered sugar
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• pinch of salt
• 2 tbsp coconut milk (I used Dabur Homemade tetrapack) 
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
• a drop of almond extract(optional)
• 3 1/2 tbsp butter
• 1 egg
• 8-10 almonds, dry roasted on a pan and chopped

Fig filling: 

• 2 fresh figs, chopped
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp brandy or water

Procedure : 

Fig filing:

Put chopped figs and sugar in a saucepan and add brandy or water. Let it simmer on medium heat till the consistency becomes thick and the figs gets squashed. Cool.

Cold oven tea cake : 

Grease and line 6X3 loaf pan.

In a bowl, combine all pupose flour, cornflour, salt and baking powder.

In a small bowl, mix coconut milk with vanilla and almond extract.

Take butter and sugar in a big bowl and beat till it becomes light and fluffy.

Add egg and beat.

Now add the flour mixture in 3 additions alternating with the coconut milk mixture. 

Add the roasted and chopped almonds to the mixture and drop in little chunks of the fig filling. 

Lightly fold the mixture and pour batter to the prepared baking tin. 

Put the tin in the cold oven and adjust oven temperature to 170 degree Celsius for 30 minutes. Do not open the oven door in between.

Cool.

Garnish with some powdered sugar, fresh fig slices and chopped almonds. 

Notes : 

• You may use dried figs instead of the fresh figs I have used for the filling. Just chop dried figs and use them in the batter.
• Instead of coconut milk, you may use normal milk

Sending this recipe to Kolkata Food Bloggers ongoing event Baking Palooza 2015. Check out the page for some more exciting holiday bakes. 

Happy tea cake enjoying

Amrita

Fig tarts with pista crumble

24th of the month and it is time for our 'Sweet day' celebration. 

For those who do not know, every 24th I share a sweet creation to celebrate the birth of the little angel in our lives, our munchkin, our daughter Vaanya.

Next month Vaanya will turn 3 years old and we will have a grand family get together in Allahabad.

I love baking with fruits and look forward to seasonal ones to experiment. Having not much opportunity to find figs here in Kolkata, once I did I jumped onto trying 2-3 recipes with it which have been in the folder since months. 

This recipe was first viewed on Masterchef Australia where Gary Mehigan took a masterclass. The combination of pista with fresh figs intrigued me a lot and I was happy to finally out my hands on it. 

As usual I have reduced the recipe to suit our small family. I have modified the procedure to my ease and have used my tried and tested tart shell recipe. 

Recipe from : Adapted from Masterchef Australia

Ingredients : I reduced the recipe to get two 3" tarts 

Shortcrust pastry for tart shells:

• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 2 tbsp cold butter
• 1 tbsp powdered sugar
• cold water for kneading

Pista Crumble :  

• 5-6 blanched, peeled and finely chopped pista
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp all purpose flour
• 1/2 tbsp chilled butter

Frangipane filling :

• 2 tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 small egg
• 1/4 tsp zest of a lemon
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 15 blanched and peeled almonds
• 20 blanched and peeled pistachios
• 2 tbsp honey

Garnish : 

• 1 fig, slices/wedges
• chopped pista

 

 Procedure : 

Shortcrust pastry :
Take flour and butter in a bowl and rub the butter cubes with the flour till the mixture resembles breadcrumbs (in texture).
Now add cold water 1 tbsp at a time and knead to get a smooth dough. Do not over knead.
Wrap this dough in a plastic sheet and refrigerate for half an hour.
Take out the dough and roll it with a rolling pin on a floured surface. Roll it roughly to the size of the chosen tart tin with 1/8" thickness.
Gently press the dough down so that it lines the bottom and sides of the tart tin. Trim excess dough.
Line all the tart tins the same way. Make holes on the sides and bottom with a fork and refrigerate for another half an hour.
Preheat the oven to 180 degree Celsius. Bake the tarts for 15-20 mins or till they get a light brown colour.
Take them out and let them cool.

For a detailed step by step illustration refer here

Pista Crumble : 

Take a bowl and mix pista, sugar and flour. Rub butter into this mixture. Leave small lumps of butter in it. Keep aside.

Frangipane Filling :

Grind almonds and pistachios with honey till you get a fine paste. 

Preheat oven to 160 degree Celsius. 

Whisk butter and sugar in a bowl till creamy. 

Add egg, lemon zest, flour and almond-pista paste. Mix well. 

Spoon the mixture in the prepared tart shells till 3/4 full. 

Sprinkle the pista crumble on it.

Press in the fig slices/wedges. 

Bake for 20-25 minutes or till the top browns a little. 
Allow to cool.
Sprinkle chopped pista on top and serve.

Happy Fig tart enjoying

Amrita