45 g Slightly stale breadcrumbs;
-(1 1/2oz)
200 g Caster sugar; (7oz)
100 g Ground almonds; (3 1/2oz)
200 ml Oil; (7fl oz)
4 Eggs
Finely grated lemon zest
1 1/2 ts Baking powder
FOR THE SYRUP
1 sm Lemon; Juice of
85 g Sugar; (3oz)
100 ml Water; (3 1/2fl oz)
8 Fresh spikes of lavender
-flowers or 6; or 1 1/2tbsp
; dried spikes, rosewater
1 Cinnamon stick
Violets; heartsease, or
; garder pansies
Line the base of a 20cm (8 inch) cake tin with non-stick baking
parchment and grease the sides. Mix the breadcrumbs with the sugar,
almonds and baking powder. Add the oil and eggs and beat well. Stir
in the lemon zest. Pour the mixture into the prepared cake tin. Put
into a cold oven and set the heat to 190C/375F/gas mark 5. Bake for
40-50 minutes until the cake is a rich brown and a skewer inserted
into the centre comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in the tin then
turn out onto a plate.
Make the syrup while the cake is cooking. Put all ingredients into a
pan, and bring gently to the boil, stirring until the sugar has
dissolved completely. Simmer for 3 mintues. Remove the lavender
flowers and cinnamon if you wish. Pierce holes in the cake with a
skewer while it is still warm and pour over the syrup. Leave to cool,
spooning excess syrup back over every now and then until it is all
soaked up. Serve with creme fraiche, whipped cream or mascarpone and
possibly some sliced fresh fruit on the side.
Yields
8 servings