salted chocolate chip rosemary loaf cake - sweet and salty come together for a perfect contrast!

every time i've opened my baking cupboard this past week, i've seen the bright blue wrapper of the dark chocolate with sea salt peeping out at me, begging to be used.

so today, i capitulated. i wanted to make something that would really bring out the salty element of the chocolate but yet contrast it with something sweet so there would be that nice sweet/salty taste in every bite. and then i remembered the delicious loaf cake of posts past. the batter has a delicious sweet vanilla flavour to it and with the sprinkling of sugar on the crust making it a little more sweeter, i felt the dark salty chocolate and the added savoury aroma of the rosemary would be a perfect complement.

and it was! i just chopped up the chocolate bar into nice chunky sized chips and popped it into the usual batter. again that aroma from the oven is enough to just make you imagine you are sitting on the porch at grandma's (that statement is obviously heavily influenced by Hollywood as in Ireland my grandma neither had a porch nor do we ever even have the weather that would encourage sitting outside on anything - porch, footpath, hammock or whatever!) it's just really good...since baking cakes with rosemary, i think it has become one of my favourite herbs. i never really experimented with it much before apart from pairing it with lamb so it is so refreshing to discover how good it is in sweet foods.

and again it didn't fail to satisfy, it was perfect in this loaf cake. each bite was a delicious combination of sweet, salty and savoury. the dark chocolate was perfect - the taste rich and smooth, the vanilla cake sweet and moist and the rosemary warm and aromatic. this loaf cake is really the perfect recipe to experiment and have fun with and so far every time i have made it the result has been delightful!

more rosemary goodness with a rosemary loaf cake!

so what does one do when it appears that the rosemary growing in the garden is going to completely conquer all other plant life? use it up of course! so there is this rosemary loaf cake recipe by nigella lawson that i have been eyeing for awhile in my recipe book and thought with all that fresh rosemary i really should try it...

the recipe was really simple to follow, as i find most nigella recipes to be...she doesn't beat around the bush and i like that. it stated to use 2 teaspoons of rosemary, to be honest i didn't measure. i just chopped up however much was on the sprigs i cut and popped it in. another reason i wanted to try this was because the lemon rosemary cupcakes i made were very lemon-y and although i could mildly get the aroma of the rosemary, this recipe appealed to me because apart from the 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, the rosemary was the strongest flavour to the cake and i thought this would really give me an opportunity to taste the essence of it.

so the final step of the recipe called for sugar to be sprinkled on the top of the loaf. and the result of this can be seen above...it formed this beautiful crust on top that cracked and just looked so fabulous and earthy as the cake came out of the oven. i loved it!

final step after cooling, was the taste-test. eager family members were hovering with intent around the loaf, looking for a sample so, i think once i started cutting almost half of it was gone (they're big into 'doorstep-sized' slices in this house!) the test was lovely - the rosemary was the dominant flavour and provided a lovely almost musky aroma and taste to the cake that also combined so well with the mild vanilla flavouring in the cake. i really enjoyed the moistness and texture of the cake. i think a slice would be lovely smothered with butter too or even an apple jam.

Rosemary Loaf Cake

250 g soft unsalted butter
200 g golden caster sugar
3 large eggs
210 g self raising flour
90g plain flour
1 tsp vanilla extract
needles from a 10cm stalk of rosemary chopped small, but not too fine (about 2 teaspoons)
4 tablespoons milk
1-2 tablespoons rosemary sugar or caster sugar
loaf tin

cream the butter, adding the sugar when it’s really soft, and creaming both together till pale and smooth and light.

beat in the eggs one at a time, folding in a spoonful of the flour after each addition, then add the vanilla.

fold in the rest of the flour and finally add the rosemary.

thin the batter with the milk - you’re after a soft, dropping consistency - and pour into the waiting tin.

sprinkle the top with a little sugar before putting it in the oven, and cook for 1 hour, or until a cake-tester comes out clean.
leave to cool on a wire rack in its tin, unmould and devour shamelessly!

from How To Be A Domestic Goddess by Nigella Lawson

herbal essences - lemon and rosemary cupcakes

i have been eyeing the beautiful rosemary plant growing in the garden for a few weeks now. it has grown so well and is just flourishing in this warm summery weather we've been experiencing these past few days. so what better thing to do than pop it in some cupcakes. for me, rosemary and lemon are a perfect combination and i have seen a lot of recipes calling for those two ingredients together.

so i gently clipped some rosemary...the smell was lovely, so aromatic and flavour-full...it tingled the senses all the way back to the kitchen! once there, i gave it a good washing and plucked the leaves from the sprigs. then i set about chopping them up as fine as my fingers and knife would allow...quite a challenge as the leaves are quite tough and hardy (i did have that moment of panic where i thought that if they stay that way in the cupcake it's not going to be very tasty...but then i remembered the tea experiment and relaxed!)

i made the lemon cupcakes...with the juice and rind of the lemon in there to really bring out the 'zing' of the lemons and just added the chopped rosemary to the batter. the smell of them baking was just fabulous...again that lovely aroma that i had smelled whilst picking the rosemary in the garden. it just filled the whole kitchen!

i couldn't bring myself to ice them with a buttercream or fancy icing...not sure why, maybe because they seemed to earthy and good with the fresh herbs in there. i figured a lemon glaze would do nicely and again emphasise the 'zing' of the lemon flavour. drizzled the glaze on top and then came the taste-test.

the rosemary had softened beautifully and consistency-wise was unnoticeable when actually eating the cupcake, but the flavour was definitely there and allowed for little pocketfuls of rosemary goodness throughout. the cupcake was incredibly moist and the lemon was refreshing and light. the glaze added that lovely sharpness to the overall eating experience and i think this is why i wanted to go with the glaze...sometimes having that lovely sweet and tangy drizzle is preferable to just the sweetness of buttercream icing.

it feels really great to have used some home-grown herbs in my cupcakes...nothing like being able to go outside to your culinary garden for an ingredient. these were delightful and i think would make a lovely gift...maybe you could give them to someone as a housewarming with a rosemary plant. there is so much that can be done with herbs on so many levels that really we ought to explore using them more and growing our own too.

Cupcake
1 3/4 c. flour
1 1/2 t. baking powder
2 t. finely chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 t. salt
1/2 c. butter
2 eggs
1 c. sugar
1 1/2 t. lemon extract
1/2 t. vanilla
2/3 c. milk
2 t. lemon peel
3 T. lemon juice

Combine flour, baking powder, rosemary and salt in a small bowl.
In a large bowl, beat butter, then add sugar. beat until fluffy. add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. add lemon extract and vanilla and beat until well combined.
Alternately add flour mixture and milk in three additions.
Stir in lemon peel and juice and then scoop into cupcake cases.
bake for 20-25 mins until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.

Lemon Glaze
1 c. icing sugar
5 t. lemon juice
2 t. lemon peel

combine icing sugar, lemon juice and lemon peel. stir until runny consistency and drizzle over cooled cupcakes.