Hey folks n blokes! A few days ago ya might've been one of the people who helpfully responded to my question asking which LotR recipe we should cook next, and you all had great ideas. Including a golum salmonella sushi platter. There were a few that twinkled directly into my eyes, but only one fish gets fried at a time! Thanks @vensre for the suggestion!
Today from Lord of the Rings, we will be making Bilbo Baggin's Seed Cakes
(As always you can find the cooking instructions and full ingredient list under the break-)
MY NAMES CROSS NOW LETS COOK LIKE ANIMALS
SO, “what goes in to a Seed Cake?” YOU MIGHT ASKIf you're an amer*can like me, you might have never heard of a seed cake outside of the context of bird feeders.
Salted butter
Fine sugar
Whole milk
Eggs
Almond flour
Vanilla extract
Brown sugar
Caraway/fennel seeds
Ground anise seed
Ground nutmeg
The real key ingredient here is the caraway seeds. The factor that ties all recipes together.
Important note, anise seeds and anise stars are 2 separate things!
AND, “what does a Seed Cake taste like?” YOU MIGHT ASKTastes like what an old bookstore smells like.
Smells like warm licorice
But without the chemical-y aftertaste
Take a shortbread and make it denser and with less airpockets. Thats your texture.
A little bit like gingerbread but nuttier, earthier
Very rich
Beautiful crumbly brown outside, soft teddybear-brown inside
Pairs well with a glass of milk hahaha
"A wonderful blend of sweet and savoury, seed cakes make a perfect after-supper morsel."-LotR Online. Mentioned both in the books and the MMO, being served after dinner ties into their real-life origins! Before caraway seeds in cakes became popular in the victorian era, they were often candied and served as dessert because caraway seeds help with after-meal indigestion.
. used an herb grinder for the anise seeds
. used light brown sugar where brown sugar called for
. used blanched almond flour
. if i made this again, would probably use higher quantity of nutmeg or add cinammon
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From entering the kitchen, to having this in my stomach, it took roughly 2 hours? Ish? Definitely make sure to let your 2 sticks of butter and 3 eggs sit out a bit beforehand so they reach room temp, it helps them whip together the warmer they are.
The most difficult part of this recipe was finding the seeds. Everything except the caraway/fennel and anise seed i already had, and maybe its a recent thing but since when did grocery stores start charging such an obscene amount for a regular bottle of spices? Is it not enough to have everything else infected by price-gouging, now we'll be scraping pennies for our little flavor heavens? Bleh.
The seed cake is a new experience for me also, and many pardons if some sacred seed cake rule has been broken today. It tasted fantastic! The licorice was a strong flavor I've never experienced in this form before, it suits itself well. If you're baking for children or have a sweeter palette, the bitterness may be a bit much, but just have them dunk it in milk honestly. It did feel like there was some 'empty space' on my palette while eating- if that makes any sense? It couldve been layered with another flavor but i still can't put my finger on what that missing flavor could be.
Definitely be careful to put the eggs into the butter/sugar a little bit at a time. I got impatient the first-go, and the eggs incorporated less, and it led to a greasier cake.
People seem to say that storing these and eating them the next day makes them taste better, i cannot attest as i ate both within the same day of making them.
This recipe has earned itself a glimmering 7/10, for making my kitchen smell nice but also making me use a standmixer if i want my arms to stay attached (with 1 being food that makes one physically sick and 10 being food that gives one a lust for life again.)
🐁 ORIGINAL RESIPPY TEXT BELOW 🐁
Ingredients:
220g salted butter
225g fine sugar
16g of milk
3 eggs
175g almond flour
2 drops vanilla extract
Pinch of brown sugar
1tbsp caraway seeds
1 1/2tbsp ground anise seed
1/2tsp ground nutmeg
Method:
Pre-heat the oven to 320F. Soften the butter and let eggs come to room temperature.
Cream the butter by itself for around 5 minutes with a standmixer on med., until light in color. Add sugar and continue until the mixture is pale and fluffy.
In a seperate bowl beat the eggs until 'frothy'.
Stir a small amount at a time of the eggs iinto the butter and sugar mixture, making sure each portion incorporates as you go.
Add the caraway, ground anise seed, ground nutmeg, and vanilla extract.
Gently fold in the almond flour. Careful not to overmix.
Add a tablespoon of milk, or until the batter keeps its form but drips off an upside down spoon.
Pour into a greased 9-inch round cake pan, if not available muffin/cupcake pans should also work.
Sprinkle a bit of brown sugar on top.
Bake for 40-50 minutes. Cool for 10 before serving.
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