Gochugaru Girl loves sesame seeds.
In fact, crushing them by hand is a very therapeutic thing to do.
The crushed seeds usually go into a salad dressing to be eaten with green beans, but I needed something sweet as we had many guests over the weekend.
My initial thought was to make some ice cream or even some sesame macarons.
However it is a busy time of the year (admittedly, it is always busy Chez Gochugaru), and I finally decided to make some cakes with them.
The base is of a banana cake, and I used two types of sesame seeds: white seeds in muffins and black seeds in a loaf cake. Both proved to be a great success.
A word of warning: I call these muffins but they are not as large as American muffins. I did not want to call them cupcakes as British cupcakes (of the sort my mother-in-law makes) are much smaller. In reality they are a unique British size.
It is extremely easy to crush your own seeds using a small food processor. I use a traditional Japanese pestle (surikogi) and mortar (suribachi).
It is also possible to buy the seeds ready crushed from a Japanese grocery store. If you live in the UK, the Japan Centre is a reliable on-line supplier of all things Japanese.
For the Muffins:
180 g self-raising flour
Pinch of salt
120 g caster sugar
50 g crushed toasted white sesame seeds
120 g sunflower oil
2 eggs
320 g very ripe bananas (peeled weight), mashed
For the Loaf Cake:
180 g self-raising flour
Pinch of salt
100 g caster sugar
50 g crushed toasted black sesame seeds
120 g sunflower oil
2 eggs
320 g very ripe bananas (peeled weight), mashed
80 g chopped white chocolate
You will also need 2-lb loaf tin or a 12-hole muffin tray, lined with grease-proof paper or muffin cases.
How to Make:
Preheat the oven to 180°C/ 350°F/ Gas 4.
Sieve the flour into a large mixing bowl.
Add the salt, sugar, sesame seeds, oil, eggs and bananas.
Mix everything together using a balloon whisk, a hand-held electric beater or a Kitchen Aid. The joy of this recipe is that whichever method you use, the cake batter forms easily and is no effort to make.
If you are making cupcakes, divide the mixture between the cases. Bake for 30 minutes.
If you are making the loaf cake, add the white chocolate. Give the batter a quick stir to distribute the chocolate, then pour into the baking tin. Bake for 55 minutes.
