Tahini cakes with orange blossom glaze

This recipe is traditionally made during Lent because it contains no animal products. As these little Greek tahini cakes contain no butter or eggs they tend to be on the crumbly side, but they’re delicious nonetheless, especially when drizzled with the orange blossom glaze. Best eaten on the day of making.

Tahini orange cakes. Credit: Benito Martin

• makes

  6

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  25 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra, for greasing
• 80 g caster sugar
• 100 g hulled tahini
• 1 orange, zest grated
• ½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
• ½ tsp apple cider vinegar
• 165 g plain flour
• 1½ tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tbsp coarsely chopped pistachios

Orange blossom glaze

• 125 g (1 cup) pure icing sugar, sifted
• 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• ½ tsp orange blossom water

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Lightly grease six 125 ml (½ cup) capacity mini loaf tins with olive oil.
2. Whisk together the olive oil, sugar, tahini, orange zest and juice, and vinegar until well combined.
3. Sift the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and cinnamon into a bowl and whisk to combine. Combine the wet and dry ingredients together, then divide among the prepared tins. Bake for 25 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Stand in the tins for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
4. For the orange blossom glaze, combine all the ingredients in a bowl until smooth. Add a little water, if necessary to make an opaque but pourable glaze. Spoon the glaze over the cooled cakes, then sprinkle with chopped pistachios.

Photography by Benito Martin

Styling by Jerrie-Joy Redman-Lloyd

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.