Moorish cakes

When I saw these cakes on Jen’s I love Milk and Cookies blog last year, I printed the recipe off as they looked so delicious. I love pistachio nuts and I also love raspberries, so they seemed the perfect combination. They are a bit more of a special occasion cake though, so I made them for my birthday brunch on Sunday. The title of Moorish is a bit of a play on words as the cakes are moreish but also the Moroccan flavours of syrup cakes and pistachios also make them decidedly Moorish!



I made them in little cake moulds – next time I think I would make them in cupcake cases as they were a bit of a nightmare to get out of the tins! Mind you I was probably being my usual hasty self!!! The ones that did come out ok (which was actually most of them) look so cute.



I love syrup cakes and I love cakes made with almonds, as I love the moistness of texture that you get. Combining that yummy moistness with pistachios and raspberries is heavenly, as you get the waxy crunch of the pistachios and then the tartness of the raspberries.



Initially I thought that I wouldn’t make the syrup as the cakes seemed rich enough as it was (this was after I had nearly eaten all of the mixture that had stuck in the tins of the cakes I didn’t get out properly!), but I am so pleased that I did, as the syrup really made them!!! I didn’t put quite as much sugar in the syrup as the recipe stated and I also didn’t use as many pistachios in the syrup as the recipe said, but there were still more than enough pistachios to decorate the tops of my cakes.

These are the perfect cakes for a special occasion! I couldn't decide which photo of the cakes I liked best, so I have put them all in!

As an aside, last night for dinner we had fresh fish which I roasted in a hot oven after sprinkling with avocado oil, ras al hanout (a Moroccan spice mix) and sea salt. To go with it I made a salad adapted from one that was in an old cuisine magazine, of cucumber, roasted red peppers, chopped cos lettuce, toasted almonds and dates with a drizzle of lemon infused olive oil. It was so good!!! The dates and almonds really made it as they introduced some different textures and flavours. Very summery!