Cardamom Rose Cake with Orange Drizzle

Serves	8 to 10 slices
Prep time	15 minutes
Cook time	30 minutes
Total time	45 minutes
Allergy	Egg, Wheat
Dietary	Vegetarian
Meal type	Dessert
Misc	Gourmet, Pre-preparable, Serve Cold
Occasion	Birthday Party, Christmas, Easter, Formal Party, Thanksgiving, Valentines day
Region	British
By author	Karen S Burns-Booth

An exotic and very special cake, warm with cardamom and oranges as well as being fragrant with roses and rose petal jam. This cake is perfect when served at the end of a formal meal with dessert wine, as well as being the centre piece of a formal afternoon tea; it's deliciously decadent with light, fluffy orange soaked sponge cake and highly fragrance rose petal jam. I make my own rose petal jam, as does my mum, but if you can buy it in most Middle Eastern or Turkish markets.

Ingredients

Cake

4 eggs
Unsalted butter, softened, plus a little more for greasing
Caster sugar
Self-raising flour, sieved with a pinch of salt
10 cardamom pods
2 small oranges, zested, plus the juice of 1 of the oranges

Drizzle

Juice of 1 small orange
4 tablespoons caster sugar

Filling

Rose petal jam

Decoration

Crystallised rose petals
Edible pearls
A little rose petal jam

Note

Directions

Step 1	Heat the oven to 180C/350F/gas mark 4. Lightly grease a 8” (20cm) sandwich cake tin and line with greaseproof paper or parchment. Crush the cardamom seeds with a pestle and mortar, and discard the husks when the seeds have been extracted. Drizzle: Gently heat the orange juice in a small saucepan and add the sugar, take off the heat and stir until the sugar has dissolved set to one side until needed.
Step 2	Weigh the eggs in their shells and weigh out the same amount of butter, sugar and flour. In a bowl, beat the butter and the sugar together until light and fluffy. Gently fold in the eggs and flour alternately, until the egg and flour mixture have been used up. Beat in the orange zest and juice, as well as the cardamom seeds.
Step 3	Spoon the cake mixture into the the prepared cake tins. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until well risen and golden brown, and when a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Pour the orange drizzle over the hot cake and then leave to cool in the tin for 15 minutes, before turning the cake out of the tin and allowing it to cool completely on a wire rack.
Step 4	When the cake is completely cold, carefully cut the cake in half and place the bottom cake (the one with no drizzle topping) onto a serving plate or platter. Spread generously with the rose petal jam, or jam of your choice, and then place the other cake half (with the drizzle topping) on top of the jam covered bottom half.
Step 5	Spread some more jam over the top, just a light covering and then arrange the pearls and crystallised rose petals over the top. Fresh rose petals can be used when roses are in bloom.
Step 6	Icing sugar can be sifted over the top just before serving if you wish. This cake is delicious when served with Sauternes or other dessert wines, as well as coffee and tea.