Chestnut & Pine Nut Upside Down Cake

So we have a rare treat for you today! It is not so often that we share dessert recipes with you here on the blog …. just because Joel and I are both more ‘savoury’ type of people and don’t eat desserts that very often (ok, we also get to ‘test’ a lot of desserts at Wild Food Cafe!).

However, we asked our dessert chef Alessio to share his latest and most favourite cake recipe from the new menu with you. And so we present to you: the moist and decadent Chestnut & Pine nut Upside Down Cake. It is so deliciously warming and seasonal, it would stand its ground on any festive table. All plant-based / gluten-free as well!

Chestnut & Pinenut Cake

Ingredients & Method

Step One:  (wet ingredients)

• 1 ¼   cups    Almond Milk
• 1       stalk   Rosemary (only leaves)
• 2 ½   tsp      Apple Cyder Vinegar
• ¾      cup     Maple Syrup
• 100   gr       Olive Oil
• 200   gr       Boiled Chestnuts

Mix the almond milk, the rosemary leaves, and apple cider vinegar in a bowl and let sit for 10 minutes. Pour the mixture in a high-speed blender and add the maple syrup, the boiled chestnuts, and the olive oil. Blend well to combine all the ingredients.

Step Two:  Base (dry ingredients)

• 1 ½   cups   Gluten-Free flour
• ¼      cup     Chestnut flour
• ¼      cup     Almond flour
• ¾      cup     Coconut sugar
• 2     tsp     Baking Powder
• ½      orange skin grated
• ½      tsp     Salt
• 30    gr       Pinenuts
• 30    gr       Raisins (soaked)

Sieve the flours and the coconut sugar in a bowl. Add baking powder and salt. Add the pinenuts, the soaked raisins and the orange grated

Step Three:  Bottom of the Cake

• 30    gr   Pinenuts
• 30    gr   Raisins (soaked)
• 200  gr   Boiled Chestnuts

Roughly chop the chestnuts, spread on the bottom of a cake tin (10” round). Add the pinenuts and the raisins to the chestnuts

Step Four:  Caramel

• ½    cup   Coconut sugar
• 2     Tbsp  Coconut Oil
• 4     Tbsp  Water

Mix the coconut sugar, oil, and the water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil on a medium/low heat. Take it off when the sugar is well dissolved. Pour the caramel over the “bottom of the cake”. 

Step Five: Assembling

Mix the wet and the dry ingredients with a whisk until the mix is smooth. Pour the mixture into the round cake tin and cover evenly the nuts/raisin/caramel mixture. Bake at 190-200°C for 60-75 minutes

Yum Yum!