Parsnip Hazelnut Cake with Praline Cremeux

  • Level: Intermediate
  • Yield: 8 to 12 servings
  • Total: 1 hr 20 min
  • Active: 25 min
Many years ago, when I had a bakery back in San Francisco, I made parsnip cake instead of carrot cake. Parsnips, browned butter, hazelnuts and sage are ingredients I use together often in ravioli or agnolotti pasta dishes, and I simply translated that powerful combination into a sexy dessert.
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Ingredients

Cake:

4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter

6 fresh sage leaves 

2 large eggs 

6 ounces sugar 

3 cups grated parsnips (grated in the food processor with the blade attachment, not the grater; 2 to 3 parsnips) 

3/4 cups ground roasted hazelnuts or hazelnut flour 

6 ounces all-purpose flour 

1 teaspoon baking powder 

1 teaspoon kosher salt 

1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg 

Praline Cremeux:

4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature

1/4 cup almond butter 

1 tablespoon store-bought caramel sauce 

1 ounce oat milk, almond milk or dairy milk 

Pinch kosher salt 

4 ounces heavy cream 

Directions

Special equipment:
a 9-by-13-inch nonstick baking dish
  1. For the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. Add the butter to a small skillet over medium heat. Cook with the sage leaves until the butter is browned, then remove the leaves and set aside on a paper towel-lined plate. Reserve for later. Let the butter cool slightly.
  3. Add the eggs and sugar to a stand mixer fitted with a whip attachment. Whip on medium-high speed until it has thickened, 5 to 7 minutes.
  4. Add the grated parsnips, ground hazelnuts, reserved browned butter, flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Fold until just combined, then pour into a 9-by-13-inch nonstick baking dish.
  5. Bake until golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes.
  6. For the praline cremeux: Add the cream cheese, almond butter, caramel sauce, oat milk and salt to a food processor. Turn on the food processor and stream in the cream until fully blended, scraping down the sides as needed.
  7. Pour the mixture into a bowl and refrigerate while the cake is baking.
  8. Spoon the cake into jars or rocks glasses, then drizzle with the cremeux and garnish with the reserved fried sage leaves.

Let's Get Cooking!

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