Ispahan is one of my favourite flavour combinations, it’s a blend of rose, raspberry and lychee that is attributed to Pierre Herme, he’s even dedicated an entire recipe book to ispahan. It’s so exotic and floral, but at the same time light and not at all overpowering. These ispahan yoghurt cakes are a little more dense than usual sponge cakes, but they are so moist from the fresh raspberries that are baked inside as well as the lychee icing.
I’ve baked with ispahan before, it’s so refreshing and these ispahan yoghurt cakes are dangerously moreish. I decorated them with rose petals and icing that I dyed a light pink colour, to make these a little bit romantic, perhaps if you’re feeling really motivated you could make these for Valentine’s Day. I made them just because I wanted to eat them, but I think someone would appreciate these as a gift, or they would be a lovely addition to an afternoon tea.
I really struggled to find lychees in fresh or canned form. Ideally I wanted them canned as I don’t really like peeling lychees, as much as I like the flavour they remind too much of eyeballs ever since I watched We Need To Talk About Kevin. I wont link to the part of the film I’m referring to, but if you’ve seen the film, you know what I mean.
I managed to get canned lychees from my local oriental supermarket and I just blended the fruit without their syrup and sifted it to create a puree to use in the cake mix and the icing. The syrup is delicious though so you could always reserve this and use it in cocktails. My visit to the Oriental supermarket was pretty much in and out as I was in a rush (as usual), but I am definitely going back to see what other interesting ingredients they have, I spied some bottles of Mountain Dew, I didn’t know you could still buy that!
Ispahan Yoghurt Cakes
Ingredients
- The Cake:
- 125 g Unsalted Butter softened
- 225 g Caster Sugar
- 4 Drops Holy Lama Rose Extract
- 4 Tbsp Lychee Puree
- 2 Medium Eggs
- 300 g Plain Flour sifted
- 2 Tsp Baking Powder
- 115 g Natural Yoghurt
- 150 g Fresh Raspberries
- To decorate:
- 200 g Icing Sugar
- 4-5 Tbsp Lychee Puree
- Red Food Colouring
- Rose Petals
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 160C Fan/180C and lightly grease a muffin tin that has 12 cavities. I used a silicone muffin pan as this makes turning out the cakes easier when you haven't used a cake case.
- Place the butter and sugar in a bowl and cream them together until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs one and a time and beat them in fully.
- Add the rose extract and lychee puree to the mixture, then add the plain flour and baking powder and mix gently, add the yoghurt and combine everything together ensuring it's evenly mixed.
- Put a big teaspoonful of batter into the bottom of each muffin hole. Place 2-3 raspberries on top of the mix and press them in slightly. Make sure you use up all the raspberries.
- Cover the raspberries with the remaining cake batter and place in the oven to cook for 25-30 mins or until golden and a cocktail stick comes out clean.
- To make the icing mix the icing sugar and lychee puree together, you might not need all of it, it depends how runny you want your icing. Add a few drops of colouring until you get your desired colour.
- Turn the cakes out of their tins and place them on a rack or a plate with the bottom facing upwards. You may need to trim the tops to make the cakes flat, you can eat this as the cook's share.
- Drizzle the icing over the cake and then decorate with the rose petals.
Notes
Take a look at these other links covering ispahan or some of the ispahan flavours:
Pistachio Biscuits with Rose and Almonds
Rose, Raspberry and Pink Peppercorn Macarons
Rose, Raspberry and Lychee Shortbread Cookies
Raspberry and Lychee Curd Tartlets with Crystallised Rose Petals
Ispahan Marshmallows
Thanks for reading.
Angela
Jodie Dodd
I’ve never heard of ispahan but it sounds like a lovely combination. I’ve never baked with yogurt before but my sister uses it in just about everything. I need to use it as a substitute more. I love that you made these just because you wanted to eat them Angela! 😀 Lol, Mountain Dew is still very much in mass production here in the States! #DoTheDew
Anastasia
Looks really delicious, Angela! I love Ispahan macarons & croissants by Pierre Herme, so good.
Sophie MacKenzie | Wholehearted Eats
These cakes are so beautiful! Rose petals are the way to my heart every time <3
Ruby & Cake
oooo I love ispahan! (and so pleased I now know what to call that flavour blend) These will be perfect for an afternoon tea – they are so pretty x
Sugar et al.
These are so beautiful and the flavours are incredible!
patisseriemakesperfect
Thank you so much Sonali.
All That I'm Eating
Well after seeing this and learning what ispahan is I need to get some in my life!
patisseriemakesperfect
You definitely do!
Deb
where does one find the rose extract used in this recipie?
patisseriemakesperfect
Hello Deb and thanks for getting in touch, Holy Lama Spice Drops can be purchased in a number of locations. You can check for local stockists here: http://holylama.co.uk/stockists/ or you can buy them from Amazon, Ocado or Whole Foods. I hope that helps. Thanks Angela
choclette
These are so pretty Angela and I adore the name. I remember having some perfume called Ispahan when I was a teenager which I loved. The addition of lychee sounds quite intriguing. I use yoghurt or kefir a lot in my baking. I really like the texture it gives cakes. I’m now wondering what Mountain Dew is.
patisseriemakesperfect
Thank you – the name is so exotic isn’t it? This is the first yoghurt cake I’ve made, but you’re right it’s great for making cakes with, it gives them a really nice texture. Mountain Dew is an American soft drink that I think is predominantly E numbers – I wont be buying it any time soon!
christinegalvani
I have not heard of Ispahan before, but I can imagine the amazing flavor it adds. Love these little cakes!
patisseriemakesperfect
Thank you so much, it’s lovely do give it a try if you can.
Hannah Hossack-Lodge (Domestic Gothess)
These look so dreamy! I haven’t tried Ispahan before but it sounds lovely 🙂 I know what you mean about eyeballs… I read We Need To Talk About Kevin and found it a bit traumatising so couldn’t bring myself to watch the film…
patisseriemakesperfect
Oh Hannah I’m glad it’s not just me that was creeped out by we need to talk about Kevin. These are really lovely, you should experiment with it in one of your lovely layer cakes.
Camilla Hawkins
What glorious looking cakes, I have never heard of ispahan before but it sounds divine:-)
patisseriemakesperfect
Thank you so much Camilla, it’s a lovely flavour, be sure to try it.
Love & Zest (@KristinaLaRueRD)
oooo. this looks yum!
patisseriemakesperfect
Thanks so much.
insidetherustickitchen
These are so pretty and sound really interesting. I’d love to make these for Valentines!
patisseriemakesperfect
They are amazing and really easy and delicious. You’ll love them.
sue | theviewfromgreatisland
I’ve never heard of this flavor combination before, it sounds incredible! I love the delicate color of these cakes…perfect for Valentine’s Day!
patisseriemakesperfect
It really is incredible and I was aiming for something a little Valentine’s Day themed, I’m so glad that came across.
Corina
Such cute little cakes! I hadn’t heard of the term ispahan before but it sounds like a lovely combination of flavours – great for Valentines day too!
patisseriemakesperfect
Thanks Corina, it’s a great flavour combination and you’re right they are perfect for Valentines Day.
Deborah Thompson
Love this Angela! They look gorgeous.
patisseriemakesperfect
Thanks Debs! They taste fabulous.
efwalt
These sound just delightful. I love floral flavours and I’m often looking at different ingredients to pair it with. Pistachio is a favourite, and raspberry has always worked well. I would never have thought about adding lychee! Pierre is a genius! Fantastic recipe and thank you for introducing me to something new 🙂
patisseriemakesperfect
You’re more than welcome Emma. I am so glad you like this, they are really delicious and so easy to make. Pierre is most definitely a genius!