Orange and Almond Cake

Fridays, I have no classes-yay for me!! So Fridays have become my favorite day of the week to cook, bake and try new recipes. Given that it’s still a work day for everyone else; it doesn’t quite feel like the weekend, so I like to try to do something semi-constructive. I also need to keep myself occupied so I don’t torture my poor husband who works from home. And so for everyone’s sanity, I bake and cook on Fridays. They(who they is, I don’t know) say Friday is probably one of the worst days to update your blog-no one is at their computer to read it but hey, I need something to do and such is the story of my life.

I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned this before, but I love to try recipes with a cult following-one of the first recipes I did on my blog was the Zuni Chicken. I like to see what all the hoopla is about and see if it will become a staple recipe for me. I have a binder with about 20 recipes; I’ve been dying to try. Well today, I decided to make one of those recipes- Claudia Roden’s Orange and Almond cake. If you don’t know who Claudia Roden is, I’ll basically say she’s considered to be the foremost experts on Middle Eastern cuisine today. If you look below, you’ll see it’s quite the interesting recipe as the ingredients are scarce and not your typical cake ingredients. After having made it, I’ll say it is very different from what I’m use to. I know you will roll your eyes at this-but it is very orangey. I mean very very orangey…is that even a word? When you make this cake, you poach the oranges and then puree them in a food processor-skin and all. I think, I’d like to try this again but without the orange skin; it’s too much for me. I think it would be even nice with a different fruit. I do have to say though that I love almond flour. So the verdict on this recipe is: if the ingredients intrigue you then try it. If you love oranges then try it. If you hate oranges…stay away ;)

Orange and Almond Cake
Recipe
Adapted from Claudia Roden

2 large oranges
6 eggs
1/2 pound ground almonds
1/2 pound sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder

Directions
1. Wash oranges and place in hot water to simmer for 2 hours.
2. After 2 hours take them out, let them cook. If needed cut them open and remove sees.
3. Take oranges and puree in food processor.
4. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
5. Beat the eggs and then slowly add all other ingredients. You do all this in the food if you'd like.
6. Pour into a prepared springform pan or a regular 8inch pan and bake for about an hour or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Enjoy!

Persian Tomato Cucumber Salad

A staple food in every Persian household is the Tomato Cucumber salad also known as Salad-e-Shirazi. If you have any Persian friends or have been to any Persian restaurants, you will undoubtedly have had this dish. Growing up- and still to this day, this is one of my favorite foods. I can literally eat this by the pound and I’m ashamed to admit I put it on everything from rice to chicken. Yes I get strange looks but hey we all have our ‘thing‘.

Seriously though, this salad great for the summer when it’s oh so hot that all you crave is cold and refreshing foods. This is perfect served with grilled meats or served as an appetizer. Another great thing about this salad is that is healthy, fresh and flavorful! How often is something that is good for you also yummy? I can also proudly say that I have also turned my husband on to this. He has me make a huge batch that he eats for several days. If you have never had this, try it and let me know what you think!

Persian Tomato Cucumber Salad

Ingredients
2 medium tomatoes
Half of a long English cucumber
Half of a white onion
1/4 cup lemon juice (fresh squeezed preferred as always but bottled works too)
2 tablespoons of dried mint
Salt and Pepper to taste
*you can also add a tablespoon or two of extra virgin olive oil if you would like

Directions
1. Dice up all the ingredients and put in a bowl.
2. Add mint, lemon juice, salt and pepper and olive oil if you are using it.
3. Taste and adjust salt and pepper, mint and lemon juice to your taste. Once you have made this several times you will make it your own. Serves about 4.

note: other variations of this recipe include using fresh lime juice instead of lemon.

Enjoy!