Bishnu’s Date Cake with Pistachios & Sesame Seeds
I love Dates…
The fruit, of course!
And, what I love more are easy to make cakes.
As date season has come to a start, I’ve met up with Bishnu, Chef spectaculaire, to get his secret date cake recipe.
Bishnu promised me it was easy to make.
So, we sat at the kitchen table and started de-seeding the dried dates, he brought back with him from Dubai.
Bishnu Says: It’s important to use dried dates in this recipe because fresh dates will yield mushy results.
Removing the seeds…
Then, he finely diced them
He added the diced dates to a saute pan along with the butter
and sauteed them on low-medium flame for about 10 minutes, stirring often.
In the meantime, he started finely dicing the pistachios.
By the time he finished, the dates had formed a thick paste. He let them cool about 10 minutes.
At this stage we had realized we forgot to purchase a cake ring. DUH!
Luckily for us, we got creative and used a pot. We covered it with saran wrap.
You can use a cake ring with a 10” diameter. No need to add saran wrap. Just go ahead and
place the cake ring on the decorative plate you wish to serve.
He took half the date cake mixture and began pressing it down in the pot to form a thick base layer
then he added a sprinkle of sesame seeds
covered it with half the pistachios
Added the rest of the date paste
and gently spread it to form an even layer
He sprinkled it with a bit more sesame seeds and cut the saran wrap at cake height
he covered the top of pan with a decorative plate, making sure to keep it well centered
Then flipped it over, or just remove the cake ring…
He finished it off by sprinkling it with the remaining pistachios and sesame seeds.
See, easy peasy!
Now, make yourself a cup of coffee, tea or whatever else makes you happy…
and enjoy!
Love,
Bethx
Bishnu’s Date Cake
Serves: 6-8
Prep: 30 minutes
Cook: 40 minutes
The cast of characters
1kg dry dates
200g unsalted pistachios
100g unsalted butter
120g toasted sesame seeds-more or less, depending on taste.
oh my lord…this amazin’!
Yeah, amazing is right! This is a dense, rich slice of dried fruit! I grew up in a house where dried fruits were always around and a daily treat, but this takes dried fruit to a much more elegant place.
Whoa, it’s a really date date cake! Looks and sounds delicious, but I may need some whipped cream on the side!
I’ve always loved the combination of dates and pistachios, but have never imagined them together in a cake like this, with the sesame seeds taking the flavor and texture in a new direction – yum!
That date cake looks so good! I like the pistachio and sesame topping.
Lovely recipe, I really like how versatile dates are great pictures.