Alice once again...

This photo doesn't do this cake any justice. My fault. As usual I waited until nightfall to snap the photo. 

Alice Alice Alice... I finally bought Pure Dessert and I love it to bits, despite the fact that some recipes were slightly less than perfect, but I blame that entirely on being overly enthusiastic about trying the recipes and was baking when I was tired and should have been resting. (hmmmm... that was a long sentence)

To keep things short - Kamut or Khorasan as it is sometimes known is an ancient grain. It is not easy to find in Malaysia and I found mine in the BMS Organics shop in the basement of Empire Gallery Shopping Mall. I almost wept with joy when I found it and the other grain I was looking for - Spelt - sitting oh-so-pretty on the shelf. Yay! Brownie points to me for being determined enough to look for them in every shop I could think off.

Before anyone else tries this recipe, please note that Kamut has a VERY distinct taste. You can love it or hate. It's like a durian thing I suppose. No sitting on the fence. Too me it tasted and smelled like nutty soya milk. It also has a high protein content and is quite nutritious. Look it up in Wikipedia or something.

Sorry for the American measurements here. I didn't want to tamper with the recipe too much.

KAMUT POUND CAKE
Adapted from Alice Medrich's Pure Dessert

3 tablespoons Full Cream Milk, room temperature
3 Eggs, room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons Vanilla Essence
1 cup (3.5 ounces) Plain Flour
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon (1.75 ounces) Whole-Grain Kamut Flour
3/4 cup Caster Sugar
3/4 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon Salt
13 tablespoons (6.5 ounces) Salted Butter, softened

Preheat the oven to 150 Celsius. Butter and line a 9 inch x 5 inch loaf pan with baking paper.

In a medium bowl, combine Milk, Eggs and Vanilla with a whisk. Set aside. 

Sift the Flours, Sugar, Baking Powder and Salt into a large bowl. Add any bran left in the sifter back into the mixture. 

Place the Butter into the Flour mixture, then pour in half of the Egg mixture. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until the ingredients are just combined.

Add in the remaining Egg mixture and beat for 20 seconds. Add in the rest of the Egg mixture and beat for another 20 seconds. 

Pour batter into the prepared tin and smooth the surface. Bake until a skewer inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean. About 55 - 65 minutes. Cool in the cake in the tin for about 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

French Yoghurt Cake

I have finally succeeded in making a really lovely French Yoghurt Cake. I am grateful for Tongue in Cheek and my one-time obsession with buying yoghurt in glass jars from Carrefour. Since I kept all those marvellous glass jars, I used them to make this cake. 

The only ingredient I didn't have was lemon, so I substituted orange juice instead. Oh, and then just because I do not like baking soda, I substituted baking powder. It still came out lovely. I'm keeping this recipe almost as is. You can use a regular plastic yoghurt cup (about 200g) for this. Just make sure you use the same cup of yoghurt you're using in the cake to measure out all the necessary ingredients.

Pop over to the blog link above if you would like to read more about what variations you can make with this basic recipe

FRENCH YOGHURT CAKE (GATEAU YAOURT)

Adapted from Tongue in Cheek

1 pot of Greek Yoghurt

3 pots of Plain Flour

2 pots of Caster Sugar

1/2 pot of Sunflower Oil

2 Eggs

1 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder

1 teaspoon Vanilla Essence

A pinch of Salt

The juice of 1 small Orange

Preheat the oven at 150 Celsius. Butter and flour a 3-Cup Bundt tin really well to prevent sticking. Set aside. In a large bowl, beat the Sugar and Eggs with an electric mixer until pale, creamy and double in size. Add in all the other ingredients and mix for a few seconds until just combined. Pour batter into the prepared tin and bake until a skewer inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean. About 40 - 50 minutes. Leave to cool for about 20 minutes, then turn-out onto a wire rack to cool completely.