Ginger Fig Cake & Cinnamon Ice Cream

Fig season is just about over for us. Still, there are a few on the tree and I'd hoped to get enough to have another go at a fig bar recipe I'm working on. My last picking, however, only gave me half of what I needed so I had to try something else. These two recipes evolved together, and were a happy success.

Ginger Fig Cake

2 cups unbleached flour
1.5 cup sugar (I used unbleached)
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 cup shortening (I used organic palm)
1 cup whey (to react with the baking soda)
1 tsp vanilla
3 egg whites, beaten fluffy
1 cup mashed fresh figs

Cream sugar and shortening. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Bake in greased bundt pan for about 40 to 45 minutes at 350° F. / 180° C. or until done.

Recipe Notes

• Made a very tender, moist cake.
• I use whey because I have lots of it from cheese making. Of course you can substitute buttermilk for the whey. Or milk, but if you don't use baking powder, an acid such as cream of tartar, will need to be added to work as leavening with the baking soda.
• Thank you to Laura (Polymath Chronicles) for mentioning she liked ginger with figs. Tasty!

Cinnamon Ice Cream

2 cups whole goat milk
1 cup goat cream
1/2 cup sugar (I used unbleached)
pinch sea salt
3 egg yolks
1.5 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla

Heat milk, cream, sugar, and salt in a saucepan until barely a simmer. Remove from heat and slowly add to the egg yolks beaten with cinnamon and vanilla. Chill. Freeze in ice cream freezer.

Recipe Notes

• I use goat milk because I have goats.
• The amounts are small because I use a Cuisanart 2 quart ice cream freezer
• Until recently, I had been using a no-cook ice cream recipe. Renee (Forgotten Blog) mentioned the cream seemed to become grainy with the no-cook recipes, so I tried a "custard style" cooked recipe. I think she's right. It's not necessarily harder to make, it just requires a little planning ahead.

Ginger Fig Cake & Cinnamon Ice Cream © September 2013 

by Leigh at http://www.5acresandadream.com/