Eat Your Greens!

Wartime-inspired puréed spinach confection makes for a light and bright afternoon treat

THIS delightful, bright, and colourful cake recipe is inspired by my great-grandmother’s wartime cookbook – an almost unreadable collection of scribbles which my mum keeps safe. It hardly ever sees daylight and, on the odd occasion it is out, she guards it carefully like the treasure it is.

Browsing the book, I found an old and unusual carrot cake recipe. The carrots were puréed and smooth, rather than being grated.

From here, my thought processes and experiments took over, and the puréed spinach confection that is Moss Cake was conceived.

Upon researching, however, I came across several Spanish recipes using spinach in cakes. Although it was not an original concept, the idea was new to me at the time.

Despite its vibrant green colour – which is sure to impress any guest – the recipe uses no artificial colour, and instead depends on the natural colourings from the spinach. The flavour is delicate and sweet – a totally tasty and unique way to eat your greens.

You will see the recipe calls for you to form a sabayon with eggs, salt and sugar. Traditionally a French dessert, derived from the Italian “zambaione”, this creates a light and creamy base for your cake, which results in a pleasantly light sponge texture.

Do not be tempted to skip the whip – it will be worth it in the end.

As we all emerge from winter hibernation, this is the perfect springtime pick-me-up and so easy to recreate at home.

A large slice goes down well with coffee around mid-afternoon in our Garden Café at Gleneagles.