INGREDIENT
375g wholegrain fine spelt flour, plus extra for dusting
390g rapadura sugar
10g bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
7g baking powder
5g salt
6g ground cinnamon
480g mashed banana (from about 3 bananas)
110ml extra virgin olive oil
180ml quince poaching liquid, at room temperature
8g vanilla bean paste
60ml apple cider vinegar
150g poached quince, chopped into 1–2 cm (½ – ¾ in) pieces
75g pecans, chopped
For the Tahini Caramel
75g maple syrup
35g tahini
35g extra virgin coconut oil
3g vanilla bean paste
PROCEDURE
Preheat your oven to 180ºC (350ºF).
Grease a 26 cm (10 ½ in) bundt (ring) tin (or six baby bundt tins) with olive oil and lightly dust with flour.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon to blend well.
In small bowl, whisk the banana, quince poaching liquid, olive oil and vanilla paste together to blend well, then whisk into the flour mixture until completely mixed through, with no dry pockets of flour.
Whisk in the vinegar until bubbles form. Mix in the quince pieces and pecans.
Transfer the cake batter to the cake tin/s. Bake the baby bundt cakes for 30–35 minutes, or the large bundt cake for 40–50 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin/s for 10 minutes, before turning out onto a wire rack.
Meanwhile, melt all the tahini caramel ingredients in a small saucepan over low heat until completely emulsified. (I make the same amount of tahini caramel, whether I’m baking one large bundt cake or six smaller cakes.) Remove from the heat. Depending on how hot the weather is, you may need to let the caramel sit for 5–10 minutes to get the right consistency for drizzling. You want the caramel to run — but not sprint! It should be similar to runny honey.
When the cake/s are completely cool, drizzle the tahini caramel over the top to run down the sides. Decorate with flowers or foliage of your choice and serve immediately.
Any leftover cake will keep in an airtight container for 2–3 days.