#TasteofThursday summer apricot, almond and rosemary upside down cakes

apricot almond rosemary upside-down cakes

12 mini-cakes

ingredients

6 apricots (ripe but firm, approximately 275-300 grams)

75 grams (6 tbsp) granulated sugar + 50 grams (4 tbsp) + 12,5 grams (1 tbsp)

50 grams (2½ tbsp) rosemary or thyme honey (or any other honey)

75 grams (¾ cup) sifted all-purpose flour

75 grams (1/3 cup) butter + 30 grams (2 tbsp)

75 grams (2/3 – 3/4 cup) almond powder

3 eggs (165 grams)

12 whole almonds

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

2 pinches of salt (1/8 tsp)

2 tablespoons fresh rosemary (+ extra sprigs for garnish)

instructions

in a bowl with a whisk or the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the 75 grams of soft butter with the 75 grams of sugar, salt and vanilla and mix until creamy

then add the whisked eggs and honey to the mixture and mix well, followed by the flour and almond powder and mix again

butter your individual cake (or small muffin/cupcake) moulds

carefully cut your apricots in half and remove the kernel

in a small pan, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter with 4 tablespoons of sugar on low heat until it becomes a light brown caramel carefully and quickly pour the soft caramel inside the individual cake moulds (mine are silicone moulds) which will solidify quickly, then place 1 whole almond in the middle and cover with a half apricot, flat-side down

preheat the oven to 165°C

pour the batter in each mini-cake mould, about 3⁄4 full and bake for 30-35 minutes, until the dough rises slightly and is golden in colour

in a mortar with pestel, grind the chopped fresh rosemary with 1 tbsp of sugar into a powdery texture

remove cakes from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes only and then turn out the cakes gently when still hot (or the caramel will stick) and when cooled, sprinkle with the rosemary sugar and garnish with a rosemary sprig

serve at room temperature or chilled.

George TSAKLIDIS (or g-tsak the blogger)

I was born to Greek parents who love to cook and eat wholesome food (that’s just the way it is). After being raised in Montreal (with a brief stay in Greece as a baby) and followed by a return to Montreal and degrees in interior design and electrical engineering, came my first departure as a young adult to Ottawa for a final degree in industrial design (combining the aspects of the first two) and in the middle of that, pushed to go to Paris with a scholarship for that same degree and my first design award. After several years of design work, headhunters whisked me away to be a collaborator with the French Diplomatic Corps. I spend half of my time in a suit and tie, with a briefcase, the other half in pyjamas (yes, people do still wear them) in my kitchen, most often covered in flour … Being a do-it-yourselfer by nature and perhaps needing a new creative outlet, the icookstuff blog/website was born less than one year ago, on the suggestion of loved ones, who also shared a passion for cooking and food, and of course my friend’s encouragement and support, who also happened to be a web-developer and designer and who created the website. Did the world need another food blogger? Not really ! Did people need to get back in touch with cooking and everything homemade ? Perhaps, if time, personal schedules and routines permitted it. “Know what you eat” is my motto. The blog isn’t only about cooking stuff. It’s about experimenting with food, trying to eat in a more wholesome and understanding manner and using everything you can, while wasting nothing and quite often using and including stuff as ingredients that are often discarded. Am I obsessed with my blog? Yes and no. I don’t cook for the blog. I cook out of curiosity and appreciate everything that’s “made from scratch”. The blog also represents a need to put some order in my recipe scribblings, since I own no cookbooks (the former books on my library shelves have given way to cooking utensils). I realized that I also loved photographing everything, not just the final finished results, but the ingredients, process and steps too. The blog is about sharing and trying to create my own recipe inventory, to which I refer to often, which is proof that it was a good idea to start off with (at least for my own personal use). I hope that it’s the case for others too, like I’ve said many times before, I’m not a “chef” and I respectfully tip my hat to those who are, “I just COOK STUFF, so you can cook stuff too” … 🙂