I have just poured myself a cup of tea and am eating the most tantalising cake.

This cake has the touch of the exotic about it, from the use of black sesame seeds that fleck the batter and the few teaspoons of sesame oil that makes this cake so different; so special. It’s also the kind of cake to make when you feel like having cake, but don’t want anything too complicated or time consuming. So excuse this short post, but I’m off to have my cake and eat it too!

(You can serve this moist cake with a honey ice-cream as recommended by Alice Medrich, but I like to enjoy it plain, in celebration of that delicate sesame flavour.)

Sesame Seed Cake :
(from Pure Dessert by Alice Medrich)

170g plain flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, at room tempearture
2 1/2 teaspoons Asian or toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
113g unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1/4 cup toasted black or natural sesame seeds

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 176’C. Spray the sides of an 8-inch round cake pan with vegetable oil spray and line the bottom with parchment paper.

Mix together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt thoroughly in a medium bowl and sift three times. Set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk the eggs together briefly with the sesame oil and vanilla. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter at medium speed for a few seconds until creamy. Add the sugar and beat at medium speed until light coloured and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in a little of the egg mixture at a time, taking about 2 minutes to add it all. Stop the mixer, add one third of the flour mixture, and beat on low speed only until no flour is visible. Stop the mixer and add half of the buttermilk, then beat only until the liquid is absorbed. Repeat with half of the remaining flour, then all of the remaining buttermilk, and finally the remaining flour with the sesame seeds, scraping the bowl as necessary and beating only enough to incorporate the ingredients each time.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes, then slide a thin knife or spatula down the sides of the cake to detach it from the pan. Invert the cake onto a rack and remove the pan and parchment liner. Turn the cake right side up and let cool completely on the rack.

The cake keeps in an airtight container at room temperature for at least 4 days. Or freeze, well wrapped, for up to 3 months.

Dried fruit and nuts, are the theme for this month’s WTSIM event, hosted by Andrew of SpittoonExtra.

I have been baking with plenty of both lately, so there might be a few more recipes popping up in future posts. But for now, here is a Spanish spiced bread, Pan de Higos; a dense dessert sweetmeat, as Frank Camorra describes it, that is somewhat akin to Italian panforte in taste and texture. I love it for it’s simplicity and appearance (that glorious colour in cross section, not quite conveyed by my amateur photography). Most importantly of course, it tastes pretty darn good!

Spicy Chocolate and Fig Bread :
(Pan de Higos; from Movida by Frank Camorra and Richard Cornish)

120g dark chocolate, chopped
145g caster sugar
350g honey
500g blanched almonds
250g whole dried figs
165 plain flour
4 tablespoons good quality unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

Grease and flour a 22 x 12 x 6 cm loaf tin, tipping out any excess flour. Preheat the oven to 180’C.

Gently melt the chocolate in a bowl over a saucepan of simmering water for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. In a separate saucepan, melt the sugar and honey over low heat for 10 minutes until the sugar has dissolved.

Meanwhile, combine the almonds, figs, flour, cocoa and cinnamon in a large bowl. Pour the melted chocolate and the honey and sugar mixture over the dry ingredients and mix well. You should end up with a stiff, slightly sticky mass. Spoon into the prepared tin and use lightly dampened hands to smooth over.

Bake for 25 minutes, or until it is dry but still yields to the touch on top. It will seem rather underdone; however the bread will continue to cook and firm up once out of the oven. Let cool in the tin for 5 minutes then run a knife around the edge and turn out onto a wire rack. Allow to cool completely; this will take several hours.

To serve, cut into 3mm thick slices. Pan de higos can be refrigerated, unsliced and covered, for up to 2 weeks.

[Note: I used dried Black Mission Figs and a mixture of nuts like pistachios, macadamias and almonds]