Queen Mab's Midsummer Night's Dream Rose Petal Cake

By: French Tart
Mar 6, 2008

Many of you who know me very well on Zaar, will also know of my love of and extensive research into historical traditions, cooking, food and recipes; this is a cake recipe that I have been refining for some time now, and at last, I have tweaked it sufficiently for modern day tastes! Heavenly light sponge cake, which is infused with rose water and studded with fragrant rose petals - Medieval cooking at its very best. Many people think of this type of cake as Middle Eastern, well in fact we have been flirting with saffron, flowers, herbs and nuts for centuries in Britain and Europe - our food has become LESS exotic as the years progressed. There has been a recent revival of using flowers in cooking; I prepare and cook with flowers regularly in the Auberge, and the dishes I prepare with flowers are always popular. You must remember to make sure that any flowers you use are insecticide and traffic pollution free! So, take a journey back into time - to Shakespeare's time and enjoy this delightful and romantic light sponge cake with your afternoon cuppa! This cake is also wonderful for an elegant and special dinner party dessert - serve it with a glass of Sherry, Port or Madeira for a true Shakespearean dessert cake. I have a recipe for Crystallised Rose Petals on Zaar for the decoration; you can also use dried rose buds or fresh rose petals. The name – a light and delightful cake made with wild rose petals should have a romantic name, plus this is one of my favourite plays by Shakespeare! Homemade Crystallised Rose Petals