I’m not a baker. At all. But from time to time, I at least try to slap together a cake or a tray of muffins and hope for the best. But when our friends at Fair Cape Dairies kindly sent me bottles of deliciously versatile Amasi, I decided this is my chance to shine. And a more perfect pairing than amasi and cake I’ve yet to find. This amasi cake with naartjie and thyme curd surpassed my wildest baking daydreams…
Introduction
This is the third blog in my three-part amasi recipe series.
I explained the concept of amasi in my first recipe blog, which you can read HERE. But in short, amasi (so called in Zulu and Xhosa, and “maas” in Afrikaans) is the common word for fermented milk that tastes like cottage cheese or plain yogurt.
My first recipe was for spiced amasi chicken wings, and let me tell you, it was indulgent! You can read the blog here:
Spiced amasi chicken wings (recipe)
For my second recipe, I decided to go back to basics with a good quality loaf (or two!) of amasi bread:
I was positively excited about a sweet recipe made with amasi. Seeing that amasi is naturally tangy and leans more to the savoury side of the spectrum, it lent itself perfectly to chicken and bread. But cake? Yes, please!
The recipe
Seeing that, at the time I did the recipe testing, we were in the middle of winter, I was really excited when I found this recipe for an amasi cake with naartjie and thyme curd by Nanette Botha. You can read her original recipe HERE.
Clemengold is a staple in my house, and my fruit bowl is always filled to the brim with these soft citrus fruits. They are perfect for snacks, to curb sweet cravings or for a burst of energy in-between shoots. This recipe gave me a chance to combine one of my favourite fruits with amasi and other deliciously indulgent ingredients, and all of a sudden the baker in me woke up, ready to cake it!
I prefer cakes that are not too sweet or overly topped with traditional icing sugar. I made one substitution in this recipe, which I’ll speak to a bit later when we talk about the ingredients. Overall, I was incredibly impressed with the user-friendliness of this recipe, even though it has several components (cake, filling, decoration) and it turned out stunning, both visually and in taste. This cake will cause you to be the talk of the town for weeks to come.
There’s a free downloadable recipe card at the bottom of this post! Grab it now whilst it’s hot!
Ingredients
Cake:
200 g butter
200 g brown sugar
1/3 cup honey
1 cup amasi
350 g cake flour
2t baking powder
pinch of salt
2 eggs
Naartjie and thyme curd:
4 naartjies, juiced (I used Clemengold)
1 tin of condensed milk
8 sprigs of thyme
3 egg yolks
4 tbsp crème fraiche (I substituted with soured cream! Delish!)
Topping:
2 Naartjies, 2 tablespoons of sugar, naartjie juice, thyme sprigs (Again, I used Clemengold)
Method
Cake:
1. Place the butter, sugar and honey in a saucepan and melt over low heat.
2. Allow the mixture to cool before whisking in the amasi.
3. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt together. Add the flour mixture with the beaten eggs, to the mixture.
4. Pour into a baking tin and bake for 30 minutes at 170degrees, or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. I used a Bundt cake tin, but you can use a normal round cake tin, too.
Curd:
1. Pour the condensed milk into a bowl and add 4 tablespoons of Clemengold juice. Stir.
2. Add egg yolks and mix well.
3. Take leaves off sprigs of thyme and add to mixture.
4. Place bowl in the microwave for 2 minutes. Stir well and microwave 5-8 more minutes. Let it cool completely and add 4 tablespoons of soured cream. Place in fridge for an hour.
Topping:
1. Slice Clemengold thinly and place in a pot with leftover Clemengold juice, 2 tablespoons of brown sugar and thyme sprigs. Cook until a thick syrup forms.
Finishing cake:
1. Slice cake in half and spread curd thickly over bottom half. Place the top half back on the bottom half. I also spread some of the remaining curd across the top, because it was too delicious to waste!
2. Pour syrup over the top and place Clemengold slices as garnish. Sprinkle with thyme leaves.
Serving suggestions
Note: My cake looks very dark on the outside, but it’s because of a combination of using a new Bundt cake tin and using brown sugar in the recipe. And maybe I baked it a bit too long…but it still tasted so delicious! This cake needs nothing more, other than perhaps a hot beverage. It has everything it needs; a rich, moist cake base, crammed together with a savoury, zesty curd and topped with syrupy, sweet citrus rounds and even more of the gorgeous curd.
I served the cake on a simple glass cake stand, and sprinkled lavishly with thyme leaves. It keeps really well in an airtight container and is an absolute showstopper as a table centerpiece!
In conclusion
Even though the recipe seems long and time-consuming, it’s amazingly easy to make and so worth every crumb! This one is being bookmarked in my “recipes to impress” arsenal and I’m convinced it will become a staple for festive occasions and celebrations! Plus you feel quite healthy eating a fruit cake, rather than something slathered in icing sugar and chocolate…although that type of cake also has it’s place!
The amasi complements the zingy citrus flavours very well, and cuts through the traditional sweet cake stigma. It produces a rich, moist cake which leaves you wondering about the secret ingredient. This is it! Amasi!
So, that’s it for my three-part amasi recipe collection. Let me know if you have any amasi recipes you’d like me to try. Thank you Fair Cape Dairies for indulging me with quality products that I can creatively play with in The Little Kitchen!
For my blog on a selection of Fair Cape Dairies’ ready-to-eat desserts, click here!
For your free downloadable recipe card, click here!
Second photographer and photo credit: Timothy P. Gibson
Disclaimer: I was sent these products in my capacity as photographer/writer as part of a media outreach. There was no expectation for platform coverage in the form of a blog, or social media posts. This is my honest and truthful opinion and review thereof. All thoughts and opinions expressed herein are solely those of The Little Hedonist, given in good faith and in no way influenced by the company or its affiliates. All images, unless otherwise stated/credited, are also my own.
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