INGREDIENTS
Cake
185 ml (¾ cup) extra virgin olive oil
3 eggs
250 g (1 2/3 cup) dark muscovado sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
300 g (2 cups) plain flour, plus more for dusting
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp bi-carb soda
½ tsp fine sea salt
½ tsp ground allspice
¼ tsp ground cardamom
250 g parsnips, peeled and grated (approximately 2 medium parsnips)
300 g apples, unpeeled, grated (approximately 2 medium apples)
Frosting
250 g cream cheese, softened
250 g mascarpone
130 g (¾ cup) icing sugar, sifted
A good pinch saffron, softened in 1 tsp warm water
300 ml cream
To serve
75 g (¾ cup) walnuts, roughly chopped
Pinch saffron, ground in a mortar and pestle
METHOD
Cake
1. Preheat the oven on Moisture Plus with Conventional at 180°C with 3 manual bursts of steam. Place a baking and roasting rack on shelf position 2.
2. Grease a square or round cake tin 21 cm x 21 cm with a depth of 7 cm. Line the bottom of the tin with baking paper and dust the sides with extra flour.
3. In a large bowl, whisk the oil, eggs, dark muscovado sugar and vanilla extract until blended.
4. In a separate bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, bi-carb soda, salt, allspice and cardamom.
5. Stir in the grated parsnip and apple to coat it with the flour. Add this to the wet mixture and stir until evenly mixed.
6. Pour the cake mixture into the prepared cake tin.
7. Place into the oven on shelf position 2 and bake for 1 hour, or until a skewer inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean. Release the bursts of steam every 10 minutes.
8. Cool the cake for 30 minutes in the tin, then turn out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
Frosting
1. In a freestanding mixer with paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, mascarpone, icing sugar and saffron water on medium speed until smooth.
2. Add the cream and beat until thick, careful not to over mix, as it may separate.
To serve
1. Preheat the oven on Fan Plus at 160°C.
2. Place walnuts onto a universal tray and toast for 10 minutes.
3. Spread frosting over the cooled cake. Sprinkle with toasted walnuts and ground saffron.
Hints and tips
• Dark brown sugar can be substituted for muscovado sugar.
• We used pink lady apples. Substitute with a sweet crisp variety if unable to source pink lady apples.
• If parsnips are not in season, carrots can be used instead.
• The cake mixture can be divided into regular or mini cupcake tins for petit fours (bite-sized portions).