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Recipe: Courgette, Pistachio & Orange Loaf Cake

Whenever I buy a new cookbook, I spend a few hours turning through the pages, reading the stories, admiring the photos and marking the recipes I want to try with little scraps of paper (usually torn up old receipts). I was looking through Jo Pratt’s In The Mood for Healthy Food (US / UK) for something different to match my Spring mood and as I turned to the end of book, her Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf cake caught my eye: colourful, light and citrus-flavoured (and pretty for Instagram!). Turned out to be a delicious treat.

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Ingredients:

For the loaf cake – 

  • 125ml (1/2 cup) olive oil (plus some for greasing)
  • 2 eggs
  • 100g (1/2 cup) soft brown sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 350g (4 cups) grated courgette (zucchini)
  • Grated zest of 1 orange
  • 300g (2 1/4 cups) wholegrain spelt flour
  • 75g (1/2 cup) pistachios – shelled, roughly chopped
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon

For the glaze – (I made a double batch, as measured below, and used most of it)

  • 120g (1 cup) icing sugar
  • Juice and zest of 1 orange
  • Handful of pistachios, roughly chopped

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Instructions:

It’s super easy to throw this recipe together. Pre-heat your oven to 180C / 350F. Grease a loaf tin and line the bottom with baking parchment/paper.

Prepare all of your ingredients: chop the pistachios, zest the orange and grate the courgettes!

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

In a bowl, beat together eggs, oil, sugar and vanilla, the mix in your courgette and zest.

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

In another bowl, stir together the flour, pistachios, baking powder and cinnamon.

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Mix the contents of both bowls together and pour into your loaf pan, smoothing the top with a spatula or the back of a spoon.

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Pop into the oven for 45-50 minutes (or until a skewer poked into the middle comes out clean), then leave to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

In the meantime, make your glaze.

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Pour it over the cake, letting it drip down the sides. Sprinkle pistachios along the top.

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Cut and serve. It’s great warm, just out of the oven, but it’s also excellent cold the following day after it’s been soaking in its glaze overnight in the fridge. Store it in an air tight container and it should last for about 5 days (if it’s not gone long before that).

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Recipe - Courgette, Pistachio and Orange Loaf Cake - Little Observationist

Enjoy!

A few little links!

  • I’ve been itching to make a terrarium for my desk at work for a while now and love this one from Urban Outfitters!
  • How cute is this for a sunny windowsill? I’d fill mine with spring tulips in different colours.
  • A perfect spring tee.
  • Love reading about people who craft for a living. Meet the Makers of East London. It’s a beautiful book that I love to page through for inspiration.
  • Think this is true? 🙂

These are affiliate links (but things I love), so they help support the hosting cost for Little Observationist (thank you!).

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3 Comments

  • Reply
    Kristin Sadler
    March 30, 2016 at 11:31 pm

    I want to devour your photos!!

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