Jerusalem Artichoke Cake & Lemon Cream Cheese Icing
Vegetable cakes are nothing new. They’ve been popular for a very long time now. But have you ever tried a Jerusalem artichoke cake? It’s chewy, crunchy, moist and abundant with a very pleasing nuttiness. A sharp lemony cream cheese icing sets it off beautifully.
A friend recently passed on a recipe for me to chocolatify. He reckoned that not only was this cake unusual, but it was also possibly the best cake he’d ever made. I was intrigued by the inclusion of Jerusalem artichokes and immediately took up the challenge.
At this time of year we have no problem getting hold of this particular root vegetable as it grows, almost of its own volition, down on our plot. I adore the taste of artichokes, but also find them a real pain to clean. So I don’t use them as often as I probably should. The cake includes roasted hazelnuts and I could see how well these would work with artichokes which have nutty notes of their own.
Jerusalem Artichoke Cake and Lemon Cream Cheese Icing
Initially, I’d planned to follow the recipe as written. Well apart from adding chocolate and using my usual half wholemeal, half white flour mix of course. But things went a little awry. I didn’t have any raisins for a start, so had to substitute sultanas.
But mostly, I didn’t read the recipe carefully enough and ended up using a different method entirely. I also didn’t think I needed to peel the artichokes, although I scrubbed them well and cut out the bad bits. I was right, they don’t need peeling.
If I didn’t know better, I wouldn’t have known there were Jerusalem artichokes in the cake. But wow, I’m sure they added to the overall nuttiness. This cake was truly delicious: chewy, crunchy, moist and abundant.
The Alunga buttons left chocolatey hotspots throughout the cake which contributed nicely to the overall richness of taste. The sharp lemony cream cheese icing offset the sugar, although, thankfully, it wasn’t too sweet at all. It was actually quite similar to a carrot cake, only, dare I say it, much nicer.
How can I put this politely? I didn’t notice any, er, unfortunate consequences to eating the Jerusalem artichokes in this way, so it got a double thumbs up from us.
Cacao Barry Chocolate Drops
Some time before Christmas, I was sent three lovely bags of Cacao Barry chocolate drops. This is a new range of high quality couverture chocolate they’ve introduced. It uses a new fermentation method which purportedly gives a more intense taste. The Q-Fermentation TM method uses natural ferments found in the plants and soil of the plantation which is said to give a purer bean with a fuller flavour. I’m looking forward to trying the chocolate out in a few sophisticated recipes where the flavour can shine through.
However, I decided as there were so many lovely ingredients in this cake it would be good to use a special chocolate too. From previous experience, I’ve found that milk chocolate chips tend to work better in this type of cake as a very dark chocolate can sometimes take over rather than enhancing.
The 41% Alunga milk chocolate seemed ideal. With its strong caramel notes and high cocoa content, I found it hard to stop dipping into the bag as I went along. I’m looking forward to trying the Inaya 65% and Ocoa 70% dark chocolates in due course.
Other Sweet Vegetable Bakes You Might Like
- Almond squash cake
- Beetroot chocolate cake
- Carrot cake flapjacks
- Chocolate courgette squares
- Chocolate pecan pumpkin cake
- Golden beetroot cake
- Kale apple cake
- Nettle lemon & white chocolate cupcakes
- Parsnip & walnut chocolate chip cake
- Spinach cake with lemon
For more recipes and ideas on how to use vegetables in sweet bakes, head over to my Sweet Vegetable Bakes board on Pinterest.
Keep in Touch
Thanks for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make this Jerusalem artichoke cake, I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. Do share photos on social media too and use the hashtag #tinandthyme, so I can spot them.
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Jerusalem Artichoke Cake. PIN IT.
Jerusalem Artichoke Cake – The Recipe
Jerusalem Artichoke Cake
Ingredients
Cake
- 1 tbsp brandy
- 120 g sultanas
- 80 g hazelnuts
- 200 g Jerusalem artichokes - scrubbed & trimmed
- 150 g unsalted butter
- 150 g light muscovado sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 200 g flour - half wholemeal, half plain
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- large pinch of sea or rock salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- good grating of nutmeg - about ½ tsp
- 50 g milk chocolate drops - 41% cocoa
Cream Cheese Icing
- 180 g cream cheese
- 40 g light muscovado sugar
- 1 organic lemon
- dark chocolate shavings (optional)
Instructions
Cake
- Soak the sultanas in the brandy in covered bowl for at least one hour. But soak for longer if you can - overnight is ideal.
- Toast the hazelnuts in a dry frying pan for a few minutes until the nuts brown a little and the skins loosen. Leave to cool, then rub the nuts in a piece of kitchen towel to remove the skins. Roughly chop the clean hazelnuts.
- Grate the Jerusalem artichokes. A food processor is probably best for this.
- Cream the butter with the sugar until pale and fluffy.
- Beat in the brandied sultanas.
- Beat in the eggs, one by one, alternating with a little of the flour.
- Sieve in the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt and spices.
- Stir this in lightly together with the nuts and chocolate.
- Fold in the artichokes.
- Scrape the mixture into a deep 20 cm (8") lined cake tin and bake for about 50 minutes at 180℃ (350℉, Gas 4) until well risen, brown and an inserted skewer came out almost clean.
- Allow to cool in the tin for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Cream Cheese Icing
- Beat the cream cheese and sugar together.
- Grate in the lemon zest and squeeze in nearly half of the juice.
- Beat it all together then slather over the top of the cooled cake.
- Shave some dark chocolate over the top to decorate, if liked.
Notes
Nutrition
Sharing
This Jerusalem artichoke cake is my offering for this month’s We Should Cocoa. Linzi over at Lancashire Food is kindly hosting and has asked us to combine an ingredient we have never used with chocolate before. I was initially going to send over the paprika and cocoa roasted cauliflower that I made earlier in the month. But in the end I decided this was a more unusual and worthy entry. I can honestly say, that I have never until now, eaten Jerusalem artichokes and chocolate together.
I’m also using this vegetable cake as my entry to Family Foodies over at Bangers & Mash. Hidden Goodies is the theme this month. These artichokes are very well hidden and I suspect few would ever guess what the cake contained. This challenge is co-hosted by Lou at Eat Your Veg.
Not only is this Jerusalem artichoke cake made from scratch, but some of it is grown from scratch too. So I’m sending it off to Javelin Warrior for his Made with Love Mondays.
bangermashchat
23rd January 2014 at 10:41 amOh my goodness, what an ingenious idea for a cake. I’d never have thought of using Jerusalem artichokes in sweet baking, such a novel idea. But it looks and sounds delicious. And I’m very pleased to hear there weren’t any of the occasional consequences associated with eating this particular root vegetable 😉 Thank you so much for sharing with this month’s Family Foodies challenge. I really look forward to trying it out on my family to see if they can guess the secret ingredient…
Choclette
23rd January 2014 at 9:32 pmIt’s funny, I would never have thought of it either, but now I’ve tried it, it seems such an obvious vegetable to use.
Shaheen
23rd January 2014 at 12:47 pmLooks lovely Choclette, I can see how Jerusalem Artichokes can work, a little like parsnips I guess. I’m also quite pleased to read there were not any after effects usually associated with this veg! 🙂 I’ve picked up some chokes this w/e, made soup, but still hankering for other ideas.
PS I had planned to join in with the WSC challenge, but i think unfortunately it is unlikely to happen. I made the chocolate cake with honeycomb, but never took a picture of it. And I don’t really like posting posts without pics 🙁 so no participation this time round again.
Choclette
23rd January 2014 at 9:34 pmYes indeed Shaheen, a bit like parsnips, only with a nuttier tone. Sorry you’re not posting your cake, sounds quite delicious with honeycomb. Photos can be such a pain, especially at this time of year OR if you just want to get on and eat!
belleau kitchen
23rd January 2014 at 4:46 pmwhat a brilliant idea… the best cake i’ve made recently was my parsnip cake and it stayed moist for ages… this looks glorious and I am so intrigued to try it… very pretty cake xx
Choclette
23rd January 2014 at 9:36 pmParsnip works really well in cakes too I reckon. This is quite similar, but with a nuttier flavour.
Linzi_Barrow
23rd January 2014 at 5:46 pmNice one and looks fab, I love vegetable cakes but never thought of using artichokes in a cake.
Choclette
23rd January 2014 at 9:37 pmNo, this seems to be a new one for everyone. But I now expect to see artichoke cakes everywhere.
Madeleine Morrow
23rd January 2014 at 6:12 pmThe unfortunate consequences made me laugh. I once had such bad consequences that I haven’t eaten them since. Maybe I should take the lunge back into Jerusalem artichoke land with this unusual recipe.
Choclette
23rd January 2014 at 9:38 pmThis recipe might be a good test case for you Madeleine 😉
Javelin Warrior
23rd January 2014 at 6:26 pmVery creative use of Jerusalem artichoke, Choclette – and with hazelnuts and chocolate no less! I love the texture of the cake – it looks so moist.
Choclette
23rd January 2014 at 9:39 pmThanks JW. The hazelnuts were so delicious and worked really well with the nutty tones of the artichokes. And of course I had to get chocolate in there somehow 😉
Nayna Kanabar
23rd January 2014 at 6:41 pmThis is very innovative with artichoke and I am sure it tastes fab.
Choclette
23rd January 2014 at 9:40 pmThanks Nayna
Hannah Hearsey
23rd January 2014 at 7:39 pmThat looks lush. I’d kill for a killer slice of this! Love the inventive use of the humble farty-choke… erm… I mean artichoke…
Choclette
23rd January 2014 at 9:26 pmThanks Hannah. no killing required, you are more than welcome to dig a few roots up from our plot 😉
Heidi Roberts
23rd January 2014 at 8:44 pmI have never tried Jerusalem artichokes! Perhaps I should, are they worth growing on the allotment?
Choclette
23rd January 2014 at 8:51 pmThey are very easy to grown Heidi, but do tend to take over rather. They are perennials, so pretty much look after themselves – they are very tall!
The Kitchenmaid
23rd January 2014 at 8:56 pmWow! I knew you were going to come up with something amazing, but this err, takes the cake! It’s funny, the first thing I thought about was the ‘unfortunate consequences’ – glad I’m not alone. I wonder if you could try something similar with kumara or sweet potato?
Choclette
23rd January 2014 at 9:23 pmI think it’s the first thing anyone thinks of when it comes to this particular vegetable 🙂 I’m sure kumara would work very well. It’s on my list to try.
Lou, Eat Your Veg
23rd January 2014 at 9:01 pmArtichoke in cake is a new one on me too! Shall be pinned to my Veggie Cakes board. I’m betting it added a lovely nutty note, such a great idea. Sounds like a wonderful bake Choclette.
Choclette
23rd January 2014 at 9:25 pmThanks Lou. It’s definitely one of my favourite vegetable cakes, although parsnip is very good too.
Katie
24th January 2014 at 6:50 amWow what an usual cake. I’ve never heard of using Jerusalem Artichokes in a cake before! Would love to try it
Choclette
24th January 2014 at 10:06 amI was quite excited by this Katie – well worth trying.
Sylvia F.
24th January 2014 at 8:14 amLooks lovely! It’s unusual to add artichoke in cake but would love to give it a go 🙂
Choclette
24th January 2014 at 10:06 amThanks Sylvia, it was surprisingly good.
Deena Kakaya
24th January 2014 at 8:23 amWow, this is utterly new to me…artichokes? What do they add to the recipe…like other root veg and colour and sweetness etc, how does it work with te artichoke? Your pic looks fab, looks like an utterly scrumptious cake xx
Choclette
28th January 2014 at 2:29 pmThanks Deena. The Jerusalem artichokes give bulk, make the cake moist with an interesting texture. they also give a slightly sweet and nutty flavour which works really well.
Sarah Trivuncic
24th January 2014 at 12:16 pmYou know they never really appealed to me but I would definitely try them in a cake. Don’t think I ever saw them used like this before, excellent idea.
Choclette
28th January 2014 at 2:31 pmThanks Sarah – they do make a particularly good soup.
Alison
24th January 2014 at 1:03 pmThis looks lovely, would never have thought you could use them in a cake
Tina Anand
24th January 2014 at 1:38 pmLooks delicious. I would never have thought of putting artichokes in a cake, I am intrigued. I would like to get my hands on the Cacoa Berry Chocolate Drops, especially after you described the Alung milk chocolate one having strong caramel notes.
Karen S Booth
24th January 2014 at 1:41 pmThis looks lovely and I have never thought about using these in a cake, and I should try it soon as they have taken over the whole of the bottom of my garden! Very good idea indeed, and beats the ubiquitous gratin that I always end up making!
Rachel Cotterill
24th January 2014 at 6:37 pmFascinating! I keep planning to plant some jerusalem artichokes, my parents have both grown them and say they’re very self-sufficient. Wouldn’t have thought of pairing them with chocolate… 🙂
Fiona Maclean
25th January 2014 at 11:42 amsounds fab. I love jerusalem artichokes…rather too much! I’m not a great baker, but I’ll happily come for tea:)
Jane Sarchet
25th January 2014 at 1:01 pmLooks, and sounds gorgeous. And I would never have thought to put artichoke in a cake!
Janie x
Baking Addict
26th January 2014 at 5:21 pmThis is the most unusual ingredient paired with chocolate that I’ve come across but if anyone can pull it off it’s you! Looks absolutely amazing. I can see why you were holding this back for WSC 🙂
Jacqueline Meldrum
27th January 2014 at 12:08 pmYou are always so imaginative. This would never have occurred to me. Humph!
kellie@foodtoglow
27th January 2014 at 1:07 pmAmazing cake! You have come at Jerusalem artichokes from a whole new angle. Kudos 🙂
ManjiriK - sliceoffme
28th January 2014 at 1:13 amWhat a brilliant cake ! Artichokes in a cake ?! too good !and it looks so moist . I love hazelnuts in any form , am certainly going to try it and smile a secret smile when no one can guess what it was made from hehhee
Jill @ MadAboutMacarons
28th January 2014 at 1:54 pmFabulous, Choclette! You had me going at the artichokes and toasted hazelnuts – but the chocolate, too? This sounds a really wonderful creation.
AMummyToo
28th January 2014 at 4:27 pmLooks perfect!! Thanks so much for joining in with #recipeoftheweek. I’ve Pinned and Tweeted this post and there’s a fresh linky live now for this week. Hope you can join in if you haven’t already! x