RECIPE: Courgette, pistachio and lime cake
RECIPE: Courgette, pistachio and lime cake
Presenter and MasterChef winner Angellica Bell shares a teatime treat that’s healthy and delicious
Last week, my producer gave me some vegetables grown from her garden as a present to mark the end of the series for The Martin Lewis Show. I thought it was a genius idea and so different and I’ve been enjoying adding them to our meals. One recipe which I tried and want to share with you is this delightful courgette cake. I know! I know! But this cake is so tasty and moist, you don’t even realise courgettes are in it! Oh, and the lime cream cheese frosting is literally the icing on the cake. Try it for yourself!
Courgette, pistachio and lime cake
Ingredients
150ml sunflower oil
250g self-raising flour
175g caster sugar
50g shelled pistachios
3 medium eggs
½ tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
¼ tsp ground cloves
Zest of 2 limes
2 small courgettes (about 250g) grated
70g unsalted butter room temperature
70g icing sugar
1 lime zest
180g full fat cream cheese
1 ½ tsp lime juice
20g unsalted pistachios chopped (to decorate)
Method
· Pop your oven to 170C and grease and line a 20cm deep cake tin.
· Pulse your pistachios in a small food mixer until fine or just use a knife if you don’t have one. Once this is done, you can place them to one side.
· Whisk the oil, eggs, sugar and vanilla extract together in a large bowl. Sift in the flour, bicarbonate of soda and cloves, add the lime zest and stir until it’s all nicely combined. Now mix in the courgettes and pistachios then pour the batter into your prepared tin, level the surface and put it in the oven.
· The cake should be done in about 40 minutes but remember every oven is different so it may take more time or less, just keep an eye out and once a skewer comes out clean from the middle of the cake, you know you’re there! Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack and leave to cool.
· To make your frosting, beat your butter with the icing sugar until light and fluffy. Add the lime zest, lime juice and cream cheese and whisk again until smooth.
· Once your cake has completely cooled down, spread your frosting on the top! Sprinkle your chopped pistachios, however you like, to decorate.
