Peyton & Byrne's Elderflower & Poppyseed Cake

I first made this gorgeous loaf cake in april, and it has remained a firm favourite ever since. Light, delicate and moist, it has such a lovely fresh elderflower flavour. Using duck eggs, which are richer and bigger than normal eggs, makes this cake extra special.

Recipe
Serves 8-10
Barely adapted from the recipe in the brilliant British Baking by Peyton & Byrne. Buy the book on Amazon

for the cake:
2 duck eggs, room temperature
30g poppyseeds
100g golden caster sugar
170g unsalted butter, room temperature
1 and a half tablespoons elderflower cordial
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
200g self-raising flour
140ml whole milk
Finely grated zest of 1 small lemon or half an orange

1.Turn the oven to 170C (150C fan oven). Grease a 2 lb loaf tin and line the bottom with baking paper.

2. Cream butter and sugar together in a large bowl. Then add the first egg, and beat well, before adding the second one and beating until smooth.

3. Throw in the lemon zest, poppyseed, elderflower cordial and rosewater or vanilla extract. Stir into the butter mixture, before adding half of the flour, and half of the milk. Stir gently until combined, before adding the rest of the flour followed by the last of the milk. Gently mix with a metal spoon.

4. Pour into the loaf baking tin and bake in the oven for 40-45 mins. You'll know it's done when a skewer comes out clean and the cake springs back under your touch. The loaf will be golden and have a beautiful split down the middle.

5. Remove from the oven and leave the cake in its tin for 15 minutes before carefully turning it out onto a wire rack or a plate to cool.

for the icing:
4 tablespoons elderflower cordial
125g icing sugar
a handful or two of poppy seeds
elderflower blossoms to decorate (optional)

6. To make the icing, mix the cordial and icing sugar and whisk with a fork until it is smooth and thick. My hand slipped with the cordial, meaning a little too much went in so my icing ended up a bit watery. Still yummy though, so it's entirely up to you how thick or thin you wish the icing to be. When the cake is cool, pour the icing onto the cake so that it drips down the sides. Scatter the poppyseeds ontop and decorate with fresh elderflower blossoms if you like.

This cake was idly baked to the sounds of the Kitty, Daisy and Lewis album Smoking in Heaven

Gluten Free Sticky Spiced Nectarine & Poppy Seed Cake

You've probably worked out by now that I love baking with fruit. It's a win-win situation: delicious and healthy are qualities that every cake should aspire to. My favourite cakes are the ones I can enjoy eating with gusto rather than guilt. The below was made with the first nectarines of the year, and if that isn't cause for celebration then I don't know what is.

By the way, the glitches with the Google comment system seem now to be resolved which means that I can respond to your comments. Do keep writing to me as I love to read them and am happy to reply if I can.

Recipe
Serves 8

Adapted from a recipe given on an old leaflet from the Abel & Cole fruit and veg box company. For similar ones see their cookbook Cooking Outside The Box. Buy the book on Amazon
I've added an extra egg, swopped the lemon in that recipe for an orange and a lime, and added poppy seeds to give a sweet crunchiness to the taste.


Ingredients:
3 nectarines, cored, halved and thinly sliced
4 tsp ground cinnamon
125g gluten-free mix self-raising flour (I use Dove's Farm gluten-free)
1 tbsp fresh orange juice
2 tsps grated orange peel
1 tsp lime juice
100g & 3 tbsps light muscovado sugar
1 tbsp poppy seeds
150g unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 eggs

1. Turn the oven to 180C (160C fan oven). Line and butter a 23x7inch tin.

2. Beat the butter in a large bowl until fluffy. Add 100g of the sugar and beat until smooth.

3. Whisk in the eggs one at a time, then add the orange juice, orange peel, lime juice and poppy seeds. Add the flour and mix until well combined.

4. Pour the mixture into the prepared tin. Arrange the nectarine slices on top in concentric circles to cover the top of the cake and press them lightly into the batter.

5. In another bowl combine the cinnamon and the left over 3 tbsps sugar, then sprinkle them evenly over the cake.

6. Bake for approx 1 hour until golden. Let it cool for 10 mins before carefully cutting around the cake and placing it on to a plate. Serve at room temperature with tea, or while still warm with ice cream or cream as a dessert cake. The rose from the garden is an optional extra topping.

An idle tip - for a lighter version of this cake, just swop the light muscovado sugar for caster sugar. This will create a paler cake topping showing off more of the pretty nectarine circles.

This cake was idly baked to the sounds of Florence and the Machine's album Lungs