Recipes>Parsnip Recipes
Praline and Parsnip Cake (Tårta med pralin och palsternacka)
by Rachel Khoo from The Little Swedish Kitchen
Serves 8-10
Total 2hr
Prep 1hr
Cook 1hr
This Praline and Parsnip Cake recipe from Rachel Khoo’s Little Swedish Kitchen makes a stunning festive winter bake, perfect for family gatherings during the Christmas season.
Discover more delicious Christmas recipes
The best festive mains, sides, desserts and bakes
From the book
The Little Swedish Kitchen
Rachel Khoo
The Little Swedish Kitchen
Rachel Khoo’s favourite dishes
Mouthwatering seasonal Swedish recipes
Stunning photography
Buy From
Introduction
You are probably wondering what parsnips are doing in this cake. But this white, slightly sweet root, usually found in your Sunday roast, makes just as good a cake as its carroty rival. Like carrots, parsnips are sweet, which lets you use less refined sugar, but they also have a lovely nutty flavour, and putting vegetables in cakes helps to keep them moist. I made a version of this for my baby’s christening.
Tags
Ingredients
| For the cake: | |
|---|---|
| 150g | wholewheat flour |
| 50g | ground hazelnuts |
| 1 tbsp | baking powder |
| ½ tsp | ground cinnamon |
| ½ tsp | fine sea salt |
| 3 | medium eggs |
| 100g | golden caster sugar |
| 150ml | sunflower oil |
| 200g | parsnips, peeled and grated |
| For the praline: | |
| 150g | blanched hazelnuts |
| 150g | sugar |
| For the icing: | |
| 100g | butter, softened |
| 200g | cream cheese |
| 50g | icing sugar |
Essential kit
You will need: a 23 cm spring-form cake tin, plus silicone-coated baking paper.
Method
Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan 180°C/gas 6. Line the cake tin with baking paper.
Mix together the flour, ground hazelnuts, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Beat the eggs and golden caster sugar until fluffy, then pour in the oil and add to the dry ingredients with the parsnips. Fold together, then pour into the prepared cake tin.
Bake for 30–35 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool for 5 minutes before removing from the tin on to a wire rack.
Next make the praline. Line a baking tray with silicone-coated baking paper. Toast the blanched hazelnuts in a dry pan until they are slightly golden. Leave to cool before roughly chopping.
Cover the base of a large pan with a thin layer of the sugar and place on a high heat. When the sugar starts melting at the edges, put some of the remaining sugar on top. Repeat until all the sugar is used up. Swirl the pan occasionally (don’t stir). Once the sugar has reached a lovely toasty golden brown, take off the heat and quickly stir in the nuts. Pour on to your lined tray. Leave to cool before blitzing to a coarse powder in a food processor.
Make the icing by beating the butter until very soft, then beat in the cream cheese, sift in the icing sugar and beat again until smooth.
When the cake is fully cool, slice horizontally in two. Put the first layer on a serving plate, add a few dollops of the icing and smooth over the top. Add the second layer, and repeat with the rest of the icing. Scatter the sides with some of the praline, then sprinkle some on top.
Top tips: you can decorate this cake with some toy reindeer for a festive bake.
The cake is equally nice ‘naked’, without the praline and cream cheese filling.
This will make more praline than you need for this recipe, but it keeps well in an airtight jar and is great for jazzing up all sorts of desserts.
Reviews
Have you tried this recipe? Let us know how it went by leaving a comment below.
Cancel reply
Your review
Name *
Our team will respond to any queries as soon as we can - this may take longer over weekends. You do not need to resubmit your comment.
Please note: Moderation is enabled and may delay your comment being posted. There is no need to resubmit your comment. By posting a comment you are agreeing to the website Terms of Use .
Be the first to leave a review
Ingredients
Method
More Christmas Recipes
View all
Air Fryer Portobello Mushrooms with a Herby Stuffing
by Clare Andrews from The Ultimate Air Fryer Cookbook: 15 Minute Feasts
Air Fryer Mince Pie Lattice Slice
by Clare Andrews from The Ultimate Air Fryer Cookbook: 15 Minute Feasts
More Cake Recipes
View all
Mary Berry’s The Ultimate Chocolate Roulade
by Mary Berry from Mary 90: My Very Best Recipes
Pistachio Yule Log
by Philip Khoury from Beyond Baking
More Recipes from The Little Swedish Kitchen
View all
Peas, Potatoes and Chicken in a Pot: Ärtor, Potatis och Kyckling i en Gryta
by Rachel Khoo from The Little Swedish Kitchen
Hot Smoked Salmon Salad with Gravlax Dressing: Sallad med Varmrökt Lax och Gravlaxsås
by Rachel Khoo from The Little Swedish Kitchen
Get our latest recipes, features, book news and ebook deals straight to your inbox every week
