Almond, Black Pepper and Fig Cake With Tamarind Glaze
Published Aug. 12, 2020
- Total Time
- 1½ hours
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- ½cup/115 grams unsalted butter (1 stick), melted, plus more for greasing the baking dish
- 12 to 14fresh ripe figs
- 1teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1½cups/300 grams granulated sugar, plus 2 tablespoons
- 2cups/225 grams blanched almond flour
- 1cup/130 grams all-purpose flour
- 1teaspoon baking powder
- ½teaspoon baking soda
- ¼teaspoon kosher salt
- 3large eggs, chilled
- 1cup/240 milliliters full-fat plain, unsweetened Greek yogurt
- 1teaspoon almond extract
- 1cup/125 grams confectioners’ sugar
- 2tablespoons tamarind paste (not concentrate)
- 1teaspoon olive oil
For the Cake
For the Tamarind Glaze
Nutritional analysis per serving (12 servings)
450 calories; 20 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 62 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 48 grams sugars; 9 grams protein; 154 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with a little butter.
- Step 2
Trim and discard the stalks from the figs. Slice the figs in half lengthwise, and place them in a small bowl. Sprinkle the pepper and 2 tablespoons sugar over the figs, and toss to coat well.
- Step 3
In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Sift twice through a fine mesh sieve to remove any clumps and return to the large bowl. In a medium bowl, whisk melted butter, 1½ cups sugar, eggs and yogurt until smooth and combined. (It will be very thick.) Whisk in the almond extract.
- Step 4
Make a small well in the center of the dry ingredients, and pour in the whisked liquid ingredients. Using an outward-to-inward circular motion, fold with a spatula until the mixtures are completely combined, and no visible flecks of dry ingredients remain. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish and smooth the top with an offset spatula. Top the cake with the sliced figs with the cut sides facing up.
- Step 5
Bake cake until the surface is golden brown and the figs release their juices and turn slightly caramelized, about 1 hour, rotating halfway through baking. If it’s browning too quickly, loosely tent the cake with foil. The cake is done when a skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Remove the baked cake and let cool for 15 minutes.
- Step 6
As the cake cools, prepare the tamarind glaze: In a medium bowl, whisk the confectioners’ sugar, tamarind paste and oil until smooth. If the glaze is too thick, it can be thinned by adding a teaspoon or two of water.
- Step 7
Once the cake has cooled for 15 minutes, pour the glaze over, and serve warm or at room temperature. Refrigerate any leftovers and eat within 3 days.
Private Notes
Comments
To prevent the figs from sinking to the bottom of the pan, don't sugar them. The sugared fruit creates a sort of syrupy Slip'n Slide that funnels the fig halves downward during baking. I put the recipe together as instructed, except for eliminating the 2 tablespoons of sugar tossed with the fruit, and laid the figs on top of the batter without pressing them in. They remained on top with cake puffed gently around them, just as in the recipe photo.
Like any millennial I decided to use 1/3 the amount of sugar in the cake and 1/2 the sugar in the glaze, and per my style I completely overloaded on fruit. I used a ten inch springform pan and arranged the figs in some very pleasing concentric circles. It required about 15 extra min because of the fruit and smaller surface area. So, so good. Making the tamarind paste from scratch is also a treat, if you like the experience of squeezing tangy brown goop (which i do).
I just made this and it was delicious. Most of my figs sank into the middle of the cake, which I guess is because I put a few extra, but luckily the cake still baked through. At 350 mine was also quite done after 45 minutes, so I would start checking early (as a more experienced baker probably would have anyway). Really loved the flavors!
Easy and delicious. But the taste if the tamarinde is rather subtile, next time I‘ll maximize the glaze.
I too loved the cake - very moist and flavorful. My figs did not sink and looked beautiful when the cake was done in about 35 minutes, not an hour. The glaze required quite a bit of water to make it 'pourable' and is delicious but it pools in the fig cavities and doesn't look attractive. Once I realized this, I brushed it just on the cake and that was better. I'll do that from the beginning next time.
Just made this - exceptional. But I did read comments and adjust recipe accordingly to what I thought I’d like - basically just cut sugar all around: used half that called for in cake, omitted in fig tossing, and used just a quarter of that called for in glaze. The glaze I thought was perfect and wouldn’t think this cake or any component of it sweet at all. Only future modification I’d make (and a very tiny one at that) is cutting almond extract by half for just a slightly subtler almond flavor. All in all fantastic!