Persian Love Cake
This floral and fragrant cake has the perfect touch of lemon and cardamom that pair beautifully with hints of rose water, candied ginger, and rose petals.
PREP TIME: 15 minutes
COOK TIME: 45 minutes
LEVEL: Easy
YIELD: 1 cake or 6 mini cakes
Ingredients
Cake Base
- 1/2 cup salted butter, room temperature
- 3 tablespoons vegetable (or canola) oil
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest (about 1 lemon)
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice (also about 1 lemon)
- 2 tablespoons rose water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup Bob’s Red Mill Super Fine Almond Flour
- 2 teaspoons ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
Glaze
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon rose water
- 1 1/2 tablespoons whole milk
Garnish
- 3 tablespoons rose petals
- 2 tablespoons candied ginger (optional, I just felt like it added nice texture)
Method of Preparation
- Preheat oven to M Series Oven to Convection at 350°F. Line an 8″ cake pan with parchment paper and set aside, or 6 individual textured mini cake pans lined with baking spray.
- In a standing mixer with paddle attachment, cream butter, oil, eggs, and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add in lemon zest, lemon juice, rose water, and vanilla extract.
- Turn speed to low and add in flour, almond flour, cardamom, baking powder, and salt until just mixed.
- Pour batter into prepared cake pan. Bake for 40 minutes, or until cake is lightly brown on top and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool slightly before making the glaze.
- To make the glaze, combine powdered sugar, rose water, and whole milk in a microwave-safe bowl and whisk to combine (glaze will be very thick). Microwave for 10-15 seconds to thin out mixture, then pour over cooled cake.
- Garnish with crush pistachios and sprinkle edible flowers over cakes.
*Chef Tips*
- When cake is done cooking, cool on wire rack for 5-10 minutes to allow cake structure to strengthen. This allows the natural butter and oils in the cake to lubricate the pan to make removal easier.
- Waiting longer than 10 minutes of cooling can allow the butter to cool and solidify as well, so paying attention during this step will really help the cake’s final product looking clean.
