Courgette Cake - Nigella Lawson recipe

Nigella Lawson's Courgette Cake

I am very blessed with the fact that the women in my wife's family are all fabulous cake bakers, my wife included.  Unfortunately I don't have their cake baking flair, with most of my attempts failing miserably, so I rely on them for my homemade treats.  In reviewing these homemade cakes I'll be concentrating on the recipes and any changes made in giving a score. 

This delight comes courtesy of my mother-in-law using Nigella Lawson's recipe from her book 'How to be a domestic goddess'.  

Many people I have spoken to have never tried courgette cake before.  If you haven't I think you are missing a real treat.

Presentation - Score: 7/10

This cake is beautifully simple in its looks, with the light colours giving it a fresh, summery feel.  From a distance you could be forgiven for mistaking it for a lemon sponge, except for the raisins, as it is only on closer inspection that the green flecks of the courgette are visible.  The thick cream cheese topping just beginning to run down the edges and the layer of lemon curd oozing out the middle really make my mouth water and are both in perfect proportion with the rest of the cake.  The recipe includes the option to add crushed pistachio nuts sprinkled on top, which looks wonderful, but I think it is equally good without.

A lovely, understated look results in Nigella's Courgette Cake scoring a good 7 out of 10 for presentation.

Taste - Score: 10/10

The sponge of the courgette cake is surprisingly light, particularly compared to carrot cake, but is wonderfully moist.  The generous amount of tart lemon curd and lemony cream cheese topping (none of that sweet sickly stuff!) adds a fabulous dimension and, combined with the juicy, sweet raisins, creates a truly sumptuous taste sensation.  As I've mentioned, the recipe includes the option of sprinkling the top with pistachios which adds a further dimension to the taste.  As with the presentation, I think the cake works equally well with or without the nuts, so really its down to personal choice and if you have any in the cupboard!

I have to say, this is one of my all-time favourite cakes, therefore Nigella's courgette cake scores the very first 10 out of 10 for taste.

Overall - Score: 9/10

As I've said before there are no half marks, but this one gets rounded up rather than down to an excellent 9 out of 10 overall - you might call it bias, but I just have to say I absolutely love this cake - and also by giving this a (deservedly) good score I'm more likely to get more cakes made for me :)