Courgette, pineapple and coconut loaf


I am not going to tell you that this loaf is healthy or good for you but take a closer look: courgettes and pineapple (two of your five-a-day), and coconut. And it's CAKE so that's a win-win, right?
I know what you're thinking. Step away from the vegetable drawer. But stop a second and consider the carrot cake. A vegetable. One that's quite sweet and full of goodness. And we all know what happens when you put carrots in a cake: you get dense, moist, not-too-sweet cakey loveliness. Courgettes take the results to a whole new nutty level, and the pineapple and coconut add a tropical twist.
I think this cake is moist and flavourful enough not to need icing but you may not agree, in which case a cream-cheese combo a la carrot cake would work well, as would a chocolate ganache if you're trying to camouflage the cake's central theme (no one will guess, but don't ask them to try until they've had three slices).
It was Nigella who started me on this road a few years ago, with Flora's Famous Courgette Cake in How to Be a Domestic Goddess. I think it is an American-inspired recipe (like so many of hers) and was probably devised by a creative cook gone barmy wondering what to do with a glut of courgettes. It was served to me as a traditional round cake with a ground almond-buttercream filling and topped with chocolate ganache and I dreamed about it for days afterwards.
I played around with the original and have settled on this version - a little plainer, perhaps, but with less guilt per mouthful (seconds, anyone?).

Ingredients for a 2lb (900g) loaf
170g courgettes, washed, topped and coarsely grated
100g tinned pineaple, drained and cut into small chunks
50g dessiccated coconut plus 2tbsp for the top
225g plain flour
1tsp bicarbonate of soda
2tsp ground cinnamon
0.5tsp salt
225g caster sugar
170ml vegetable oil (I use sunflower)
2 medium free-range eggs
1tsp vanilla extract

Method
Line a loaf tin and preheat the oven to 180C. Weigh up the courgette, pineapple and coconut in one bowl. Weigh up the dry ingredients in a second bowl and in a third, larger bowl combine the oil, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Using a hand mixer, whisk until it comes together. Tip in the dry ingredients and whisk to combine, then gently fold in the courgette, pineapple and coconut.
Pour the mixture into the loaf tin and sprinkle with the rest of the coconut.
Bake in the middle of the oven for 60-75 minutes - if the coconut is getting too dark then cover the cake with foil. When cooked a wooden skewer poked in the middle should come out clean and the top should bounce back slightly when lightly pressed with a fingertip. I sometimes turn the oven off and leave the cake in for a further 10 minutes if it's not quite there.
Cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning out. You can serve this warm with a dollop of creme fraiche for dessert, or as it is for tea.
You can also bake the mixture in muffin cases, in which case you should get around 16 large muffins.

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