Courgette & Pecan Cake with Moose Maple Butter-cream

One of the best things about being a food blogger, is hearing the early buzz about new restaurants, products and trends. Sometimes this can also be a bad thing as you continue to hear the buzz well after you’ve got bored with it, Cronuts anyone? (I’m sorry) But sometimes the buzz you hear is really rather exciting and very welcome.

After Food Bloggers Connect (which I didn’t attend but followed what was going on thanks to Hannah from The Littlest Bake House and Claire from Claire Bakes – who were both volunteers at the event) a conversation was happening on Twitter – Hannah & Claire were asked if Moose Maple Butter was better than Speculoos spread? My ears pricked up or should that be eyes? I love Speculoos, how could there possibly be something that is better? I love butter and what now? Butter with Maple syrup? MAPLE SYRUP AND BUTTER? M A P L E B U T T E R *faints, drools*

Yes, I was excited AND THEN I spotted that Farrah the brains behind Moose Maple Butter was offering samples to bloggers in London. I casually waded into the conversation, completely keeping my cool and made it known that I was very interested, very interested indeed.

And there you go, a week later the butter was personally delivered into my hands (via Farrah taking it to B’s work and then him forgetting it and leaving it in the fridge at work and then remembering to bring it home the next day)

I gotta say – it really is worth the hype I can’t wait for it to be available in the supermarkets for everyone to try (Launch due November 2013) I could tell you all about Farrah’s journey but I wouldn’t be able to tell it as well as she could, so I recommend you read her first interview on Slice of Me.

So there I was with Moose Maple Butter in my fridge, as tempting as it was to just simply spread it on every bread product ever made, I thought it best to try and bake with it. That’s when I dreamt up this Courgette & Pecan Cake topped with Moose Maple Butter-cream.

We can totally pretend that it’s really healthy – it has a vegetable in it for goodness sake, A VEGETABLE! MADNESS!

(Please accept this apology for all the shouting you just witnessed, I blame the Moose!)

Courgette & Pecan Cake
inspired by Leith’s Best Carrot Cake
makes 1 loaf cake

100g / 3.5oz plain flour
½ tsp salt
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 large egg + 1 yolk
115ml / 4 fl oz vegetable oil
115g / 4oz soft light brown sugar
100g / 3.5oz grated courgette – skin & all
50g / 1.8oz chopped pecans

Moose Maple Butter-cream

55g /1.9oz maple butter
150g / 5.3 oz icing sugar
pinch of salt
milk

Preheat the oven to 170°c / 325°f / gas mark 3 and butter & line a 20cm/8inch loaf tin.

Mix together flour, salt, bicarb, baking powder and cinnamon – set to one side.

Whisk together the oil and sugar, followed by the eggs until it thickens and turns pale, about 5 minutes.

Fold in the dry ingredients, followed by the courgette and the pecans.

Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes.

The cake will be ready when a skewer or knife inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Place on a wire rack to cool, remove from the tin after 10 minutes.

Once fully cooled, make the buttercream – (if you don’t have Moose Maple Butter – replace with unsalted butter and add a tablespoon of maple syrup)

Beat together the butter, icing sugar and pinch of salt – until the icing sugar has dissolved and the mixture is smooth. Then gradually add milk, until you get your preferred consistency.

Spread the buttercream on top of your loaf.

Leave it to set a little or not, just dive in!

What some fellow bloggers did with their tub of Moose Maple Butter:

Becky from Mint Custard made Pecan and Moose Maple Butter Shortbread

Stephanie from Riverside Baking made Maple and Raspberry Brownies

Jen from Blue Kitchen Bakes made Shortbread