I remember my first forays into the baking world, which began with helping mum in the kitchen.
I'd stir the cake batter and help by fetching sugar or flour from the pantry. Back then I thought there were only 3 types of flour - plain, self raising and wholemeal. That's all we had in our pantry, and certainly all I remember seeing in the small, and only, supermarket in the town I grew up in.
As I got older I discovered beautiful rye and spelt flour breads along with buckwheat pancakes, and chickpea (besan) flour crepes. The cost of purchasing a lot of alternative flours is not cheap, and some of these flours need to be combined with others to ensure that the resulting cake that they are baked with is not to heavy, dry or crumbly.
Kamut (pronounced kah-MOOT) flour is one I've been wanting to try for some time because it behaves quite similarly to the regular wheat flour we all have in our pantries. So when I stumbled across bags [amazon_link id="B004O8I4D4" target="_blank" ]Bob's Red Mill Kamut Flour[/amazon_link] on sale at my local health food store I quickly snapped them up.
Kamut flour is made from Khorasan Wheat, an ancient relative to modern day wheat. It has a buttery, somewhat sweet nutty flavour and is higher in protein, b vitamins and minerals such as selenium, zinc and magnesium that modern wheat. Its also easier to digest than regular wheat.
While Kamut flour is made from Khorasan Wheat, the name Kamut is actually a trademark to guarantee certain qualities of the wheat and conditions under which it is grown. For example it it must always be organically grown, have a protein range of 12 - 18%, be 99% free of contaminating varieties of modern wheat, be 98% free of all signs of disease, contain a certain amount of selenium and not be used in products in which the use of the name is deceptive or misleading as to the content percentage.
I've made a couple of cakes now with Kamut flour, and love the buttery sweet taste and the beautiful golden hue it adds. This cake recipe uses a mix of Kamut flour and almond meal, along with pear, raspberries and cacao nibs. Its a beautiful cake to serve with a cup of tea or coffee in the afternoon, and its also wonderful toasted slathered with butter.
If you don't have Kamut flour (which you can find at health food stores or [amazon_link id="B004O8I4D4" target="_blank" ]online[/amazon_link]) you can substitute regular flour, however I do think its really worth tracking down and giving it a try.
Have you baked with kamut flour before? What is your favourite kamut flour recipe?
Recipe
Raspberry, Pear and Cacao Nib Kamut Cake
Ingredients
- 100 g Kamut flour ⅔ cup
- 50 g almond meal ½ cup, almond flour
- 165 g sugar ¾ cup
- ¾ tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 3 large eggs at room temperature
- 185 g unsalted butter cut into cubes at room temperature, 6.5 oz
- ⅓ cup cacao nibs
- 1 pear peeled, cored, and cubed
- ¾ cup raspberries
Instructions
- Place a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat the oven to 180 celsius (350 fahrenheit). Line a 23cm (9 inch) by 9cm (3.5 inch) [amazon_link id="B001TO3CN8" target="_blank" ]loaf pan[/amazon_link] with parchment paper.
- Sift the flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
- Place the eggs in a bowl and whisk to combine. Add the butter and eggs to the flour and mix on a medium speed until just combined. Add the cacao nibs and fold through with a rubber spatula.
- Place ⅓ of the mixture into the loaf pan and scatter with ⅓ of the pear and raspberries. Repeat with the remaining mixture. Make sure the raspberries and pears you have scattered on top are pushed into the mixture otherwise they will burn.
- Bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until a wooden skewer or toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out cleanly. If the cake is browning too quickly, cover with foil. Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for about 10 minutes, then remove loaf from the pan and cool completely on the rack.
Yliana V says
Looks beautiful. I love this cake. My little five year old baby also likes a cake very much. I wanted to make this and offer her on her coming birthday on 20th May. I hope, she will enjoy it greater. Thanks for posting this blog.
Gourmet Getaways says
My mom will adore this! I'm grateful you added this recipe. Perfect treat for Mom on Mother's Day!
Julie
Gourmet Getaways
Phoebe Lapine @FeedMePhoebe says
What a creative combination- I love the idea of combining cacao nibs with fruit to add a little bit of healthy chocolate. Looks delicious!
Jennifer says
Thanks Phoebe 😀
Lily (A Rhubarb Rhapsody) says
cacao nibs are one of my guilt-free delights. I can't get enough of their texture. I'm sure they'd work beautifully alongside the raspberry and pear flavours.
Nikki says
I just started following your blog and it's fantastic. My daughter just became vegetarian and I had no idea what to feed her that the rest of the family could also enjoy. I made your mushroom wellington last week and it was solo good. I'll be making this cake this weekend. You’ve really got some amazing recipes! Keep ‘em coming
Iron Chef Shellie says
Oooo! I've had cacao nibs in my pantry for yonks and never really knew what to do with them. This looks like a fabulous option!
Brenda says
Thank you for this recipe. I was given a bag of kamut flour by my neighbour when she moved and I had no idea what to do with it. I made this cake yesterday except I didn't have any raspberries or nibs (I used chocolate chips instead) and it was delicious. Even my fussy 4 year old liked it. Thanks again.
Laura (Tutti Dolci) says
I haven't baked with kamut flour but this cake looks too good not to try. Love the pear and raspberry pairing!
thelittleloaf says
I need to try baking with more exciting flours - I use a lot of wholewheat, buckwheat, chickpea and almond but have never tried kamut!
Tania @ The Cook's Pyjamas says
I bought a 5kg bag of grain from Bio-Distributors in Tasmania because I was finding it really difficult to buy flour in WA (and I have a grain mill 🙂 ). I haven't used loads but you've inspired me. Coincidentally I saw the Bob's Red Mill flour today in the local supermarket.
Valentina @Hortus says
I LOVE this cake! Pear and chocolate is one of my favorite combos ever, but I wouldn't have thought of adding raspberries too! Now we're off pear season, but I might try this soon all the same...
So, do you swear by Kamut flour? Do you really find it lighter? I tried it a couple times and never noticed a big difference with regular wheat. But it was also a period in which Kamut was sold and praised beyond reason and talked about with the same enthusiasm that surrounds the gluten-free craze today. This is why I never gave it much interest. If I tried it again today I might change my mind!
My brother's GF uses it a lot too, but she's also a person who buys everything that's labeled 'organic' without even knowing what she puts on her table (and she lives in a friggin' FARM), so I wouldn't trust her opinion 😛
Jennifer says
The pear and raspberry combination mainly came about because I didn't have enough raspberries, and I had a pear begging to be used, so in the cake it went, as I hate waste. I actually quite liked the tartness of the raspberry against the honey flavour from the pear.
I wouldn't say the flour is lighter than regular wheat flour. It's a little heavier in texture (the raw flour reminds me of fine semolina in texture) but I liked that it was a little sturdier as I think it works well in a loaf cake and adds to the overall rustic nature. The golden colour it adds is also so pretty. 😀
I've read that kamut works quite well in pasta. That's next on my list to try!
Tania @ The Cook's Pyjamas says
Love it Jennifer. I love Kamut. I totally agree about the buttery flavour it adds to recipes. I grind my own as the flour is so difficult to buy, so find that resulting flour is better in biscuits and breads. It is lovely in biscuits replacing some or all of any wheat flour.
Jennifer says
Thanks Tania 😀 That's wonderful that you grind your own. Where do you get your wheat from?