Watercress and Vanilla Cake
The astonishing addition of watercress adds a deliciously peppery note to the vanilla flavour of this light cake. Teamed with a cool cream cheese frosting, this cake will be well received by children and grown-ups alike.
It really is important that the butter and cream cheese are at room temperature before mixing, otherwise the frosting could be lumpy.
Preparation 45 minutes | Cooking time 50 - 60 minutes
Ingredients:
For the cake:
125g watercress
285g sunflower oil
325g caster sugar
5 medium eggs
375g self-raising flour
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
For the frosting:
100g butter, preferably unsalted (room temperature)
50g icing sugar
200g cream cheese (room temperature)
Edible flowers to decorate (optional)
Method:
Heat the oven to Gas 4/180C. Grease and line a 20cm square tin or a 23cm round tin.
To make the cake, chop the watercress until very fine – ideally do this in a blender. Put it in a mixing bowl with the rest of the cake ingredients and beat until well incorporated. Try not to over stir – it isn’t the end of the world if you do, but the cake may not rise as well as it could.
Pour the batter into the prepared cake tin and bake for approximately 50-60 minutes. The cake is done when a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Set the cake aside to rest for 15 minutes before removing it from the tin. Leave on a cooling rack until cold.
To make the frosting, beat the butter and icing sugar together until pale in colour then gently fold in the cream cheese until evenly mixed.
Spread a lovely thick layer of cream cheese frosting over the top of the cake. I like to decorate with a few edible flowers, such as violas or rose petals.
Recipe by Lizzie Crow | Photography by Lara Jane Thorpe
