The cake, a book and some hot tea; joy in simple pleasures!
I grew up eating a lot of home-baked vanilla flavored cake with no frosting. We didn't have a cookie jar to dig in after school but we had a cake box that would hardly be empty. Ma didn't need any special occasion, she just needed some free time in hand and our lunch box would definitely have a piece of cake in it.
Ma's cake is still very popular in our family circle. If you were imagining a tall, fully frosted, beautifully painted cake, then you would be disappointed. Her cake was plain, soft, made with oil (no butter) and vanilla flavored. Period.
Over the weekends, my brother and I would often bake together with Ma. Our tiny hands would be busy mixing the flour with baking powder or rub oil on a white transparent paper before layering it on the baking pan while Mom would whisk eggs and sugar. There was no electric mixer in our home. Her power tool was always her hand and it still is. Every now and then, we would look through the glass on top of the oven to enjoy the magic and run back to tell her about how the cake is growing or changing color.
These days she doesn't bake as often as she used to but even today, we never order cake from bakery. Any occasion, be it small or big, she will happily get busy prepping the cake batter while Dad would take out the old oven and dust it clean. Everyone in our family loves her cake and whenever we have a get together, the house once again gets filled with the aroma of vanilla and our evening tea gets more delicious.
Few months back, I gave a tiny twist to Ma's cake. I added rosemary instead of vanilla! The inspiration to add rosemary came from Nigella Lawson's cookbook and even though it surprised me at the beginning, I realized later that how beautifully rosemary could work on desserts. Arvind is picky about cake; he doesn't like dark chocolate cake or any fruitcake. Thankfully, this one, he loves!
The woody, poky, evergreen aromatic rosemary is one of my favorite herbs. It gives the cake a mild refreshing flavor.
Just like Ma's cake, this cake also turned out soft and crumbly with crusty edges. And even today, I get tempted to lick the parchment paper clean, just like my little brother and I used to do as a kid!
Rosemary-Walnut Loaf Cake
Ingredients
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup olive oil (plus extra to grease the baking pan)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (plus extra to dust the baking pan)
- 2 tablespoons fresh rosemary (finely chopped)
- ½ cup walnuts (roughly chopped)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- zest of one lemon
- 3 tablespoons milk
- a pinch of salt
Instructions
- Pre heat the oven to 350F.
- Grease the pan with oil and dust it with some flour.
- Whisk the eggs and sugar in a bowl.
- Add lemon zest, oil and whisk again.
- Add milk and whisk again.
- In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking powder, salt and rosemary.
- Pour the egg-mix in the bowl and whisk until everything is mixed nicely.
- Finally, add half of the walnuts and give it a mix.
- Pour the batter in the baking pan and add the rest of the walnuts on top of the batter.
- Bake it for about 35 minutes or until it's cooked through. Poke with a skewer or toothpick and if it comes out clean, it's done.
Notes
2. Ovens have different cooking times. So, keep an eye on the cake as it bakes. It may take more or less time.
3. Walnuts can be replaced with any other nuts you prefer and can also be omitted.
Nutrition
The Ranch Kitchen
This is my kind of cake!!! Thanks for sharing!!!!
Nancy/SpicieFoodie
I would happily pick this kind of cake over a frosted one any day. Lovely story to go along with a gorgeous and delicious looking cake. Thanks for sharing Kankana:)
Alya
looks and sounds delicious! yum!
Tina (PinayInTexas)
What a lovely and tasty looking cake, Kankana! So perfect with my afternoon tea!
dassana
the cake looks sooooo good kankana. feel like having it with my cup of tea.
my mom would hardly bake and we would be treated to cakes from outside. an occasional vanilla cake made in pressure cooker would be a rare homemade treat for me and my sis.
Saguna
Such beautiful photography and what a lovely story! I would have never thought of the addition of rosemary to a sweet cake! Looks amazing... I think I'll have to bake a loaf 🙂
Eha
Yes, this cake, almost soft bread, looks so right for a rest, a cuppa, as we say it here, and a book 🙂 ! Both the oil and rosemary want to make me try, Kankana!
nisha
i would never have thought rosemary would pair well with a sweet cake..now im intrigued. I love plain cakes any day, compared to the ones with frosting and vanilla is my all time fav.
Nandita
This is such a lovely post Kankana. It kind of made me all nostalgic. Guess mother's cooking is always very special. The photographs and the recipes are just as great. 🙂
Rekha
I totally agree .. There is always a magical touch to Mom's recipes ... amd beautiful visuals as always 🙂
Anamika@madcooking
love the color of the cake,rosemary addition sounds really great in this cake…maa's food is always cherished however old we grow,we will always recall maa ki special dishes and her hidden love in all of them too :).
Spandana
Rosemary is a nice twist Kankana.... I would have never thought of that.
The cake looks fabulous!!
And I agree Mom's cakes are always the best!!
nipponnin
Amazed by your photos and love to try the bread...I have rosemary plant in back yard... I better tell my husband about this recipe. I know he really likes to make it for me.
Vimitha
Would love to have a slice of that.. Flavorful loaf
Arch
Loved reading that post...its so wonderful to re-live memories. That rosemary addition sounds great in this cake...
Rosa
A wonderful cake! Like you, I grew up eating more cakes than cookies...
Cheers,
Rosa
nags
what a lovely post. loved reading about your ma's cakes. mine made very similar ones too 🙂
Archana
Wow the cake looks awesome. I love the outside brown layer and beautiful combo too. Never done a cake with Rosemary. Nice to know.
Grishma @zabardast
Beautiful! Truly simple pleasures of life 🙂
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What a beautiful loaf! the crum and this flavour really get me!