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Fig Leaf & Hazelnut Cake

Course Dessert
Cuisine seasonal
Keyword fig leaves, figs, hazelnuts
Prep Time 40 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Resting time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 50 minutes
Author Antonetta Santagata

Equipment

  • 1 spring cake form

Ingredients

  • 180 g unsalted butter plus some butter for greasing the tin
  • 200 g finely ground toasted hazelnuts
  • 120 g icing sugar
  • 50 g plain flour
  • 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
  • 180 g egg whites
  • 1 tsp vanilla paste
  • finely grated zest of ½ lemon
  • 10-12 fresh fig leaves
  • 8-10 ripe figs halved
  • 40 g toasted hazelnuts roughly chopped
  • 15 g demerara sugar
  • flaky sea salt

Instructions

  • Brown the butter until deeply golden and nutty. Cool until warm.
  • Heat the oven to 170°C fan.
  • Butter a 22 cm spring cake form.
  • Wash and dry the fig leaves. Brush lightly with brown butter and overlap them to line the tin.
  • Mix hazelnuts, icing sugar, flour, salt and lemon zest.
  • Lightly whisk the egg whites - don't whip them.
  • Stir egg whites and vanilla into the dry ingredients.
  • Slowly incorporate the brown butter.
  • Rest the batter for 20–30 minutes.
  • Pour into the tin. Arrange figs on top and scatter with chopped hazelnuts, demerara sugar and a little flaky salt.
  • Fold some of the leaves gently over the edges.
  • Bake 40–45 minutes, until deeply golden and just set.
  • Cool 20 minutes and remove the leaves before serving.