Type | Cake |
---|---|
Course | Dessert |
Serving temperature | Cold or warmed |
Main ingredients | Fig fruit and cake batter |
Similar dishes | Fruitcake |
Fig cake (Greek: sikopita) is a cake prepared with fig as a primary ingredient. [1] [2] [3] Some preparation variations exist. It is a part of the cuisine of the Southern United States, Greek cuisine, and the Appalachian Mountains region of North America. It is also a part of the cuisine of Ocracoke, North Carolina, which has an annual fig festival. [4] [5] [6] [7]
Fig cake is prepared with fig as a main ingredient. Additional ingredients include typical cake ingredients, along with unique ingredients such as pecans, walnuts, pistachios, almonds, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and cloves. [1] [8] [9] [10] Fig cake may be a moist cake, and may be topped with a fig-based sauce, honey, whipped cream or a glaze. [9] [11] [12] A buttermilk glaze is used atop some fig cakes. [12] [13] Figs may be used to garnish the cake. [9] Fig cake may be prepared as a pudding cake, [14] a bundt cake, a layer cake and as a torte cake. It can be prepared as a gluten-free dish. [15] Fig cake may be baked in a skillet. Fig tarts may be prepared using fig as a primary ingredient. [16]
Fig cake is a part of the cuisine of the Southern United States [ citation needed ] and a part of Greek cuisine, in which it is referred to as sikopita. [2] [3] [17] [18] Fig preserves is sometimes used in the preparation of fig cakes and sikopita. [8] [3]
Fig cake and similar cakes have traditionally been served in the Appalachian Mountains of the eastern United States as a part of Old Christmas celebrations. [19] In this region, Old Christmas is celebrated through January 6 each year. [19] January 6th is the date of the arrival of the biblical Wise Men in Bethlehem. [19] Fig cake, along with similar cakes such as jam cake, prune cake and applesauce cake, are common in this region during the Christmas and holiday season. [19]
In Ocracoke, North Carolina, figs and fig cake are a prominent part of the town's cuisine, and the town has an annual fig festival that includes a fig cake contest. [8] In Ocracoke, the cake was first prepared by Margaret Garrish sometime in the 1950s or 1960s, and the recipe was picked up by others in the town. [8] Fig cake is served at several restaurants in Ocracoke. [8]
Pastry refers to a variety of doughs, as well as the sweet and savoury baked goods made from them. These goods are often called pastries as a synecdoche, and the dough may be accordingly called pastry dough for clarity. Sweetened pastries are often described as bakers' confectionery. Common pastry dishes include pies, tarts, quiches, croissants, and pasties.
An apple pie is a pie in which the principal filling is apples. Apple pie is often served with whipped cream, ice cream, custard or cheddar cheese. It is generally double-crusted, with pastry both above and below the filling; the upper crust may be solid or latticed. The bottom crust may be baked separately ("blind") to prevent it from getting soggy. Tarte Tatin is baked with the crust on top, but served with it on the bottom.
Tahini or tahina is a Middle-Eastern condiment made from ground sesame. Its more commonly eaten variety comes from hulled sesame, but unhulled seeds can also be used for preparing it. The latter variety has been described as slightly bitter, but more nutritious. It is served by itself or as a major ingredient in hummus, baba ghanoush, and halva.
Marzipan is a confection consisting primarily of sugar and almond meal, sometimes augmented with almond oil or extract.
Cheesecake is a dessert made with a soft fresh cheese, eggs, and sugar. It may have a crust or base made from crushed cookies, graham crackers, pastry, or sometimes sponge cake. Cheesecake may be baked or unbaked, and is usually served chilled.
Canadian cuisine consists of the cooking traditions and practices of Canada, with regional variances around the country. First Nations and Inuit have practiced their culinary traditions in what is now Canada for at least 15,000 years. The advent of European explorers and settlers, first on the east coast and then throughout the wider territories of New France, British North America and Canada, saw the melding of foreign recipes, cooking techniques, and ingredients with indigenous flora and fauna. Modern Canadian cuisine has maintained this dedication to local ingredients and terroir, as exemplified in the naming of specific ingredients based on their locale, such as Malpeque oysters or Alberta beef. Accordingly, Canadian cuisine privileges the quality of ingredients and regionality, and may be broadly defined as a national tradition of "creole" culinary practices, based on the complex multicultural and geographically diverse nature of both historical and contemporary Canadian society.
Italian cuisine is a Mediterranean cuisine consisting of the ingredients, recipes, and cooking techniques developed in Italy since Roman times and later spread around the world together with waves of Italian diaspora. Significant changes occurred with the colonization of the Americas and the introduction of potatoes, tomatoes, capsicums, maize, and sugar beet—the latter introduced in quantity in the 18th century. It is one of the best-known and most widely appreciated gastronomies worldwide.
Flourless chocolate cake is a dense cake made from an aerated chocolate custard. The first documented form of the cake was seen in Ferrara, Italy, though some forms of the cake have myths surrounding their origins. The dessert contains no gluten, which makes it acceptable for those with celiac disease, gluten-free diets, and during religious holidays in which gluten and grains are not permitted.
Kürtőskalács is a spit cake specific to Hungarians from Transylvania, more specifically the Székelys. Originally popular in the Székely Land, it became popular in both Hungary and Romania. The first written record dates back to 1679 and was found in the village of Úzdiszentpéter, while the first recipe appears in a manuscript cookbook dated in 1781. Earlier a festive treat, now it is part of everyday consumption. A similar pastry to kürtőskalács is Baumstriezel, originating in the Transylvanian Saxon communities.
Baklava is a layered pastry dessert made of filo pastry, filled with chopped nuts, and sweetened with syrup or honey. It was one of the most popular sweet pastries of Ottoman cuisine. It is also enjoyed in Arabian, Persian and Greek cuisine.
Bermudian cuisine blends British and Portuguese cuisine with preparations of local seafood species, particularly wahoo and rockfish. Traditional dishes include codfish and potatoes served either with an add-on of hard-boiled egg and butter or olive oil sauce with a banana or in the Portuguese style with tomato-onion sauce, peas and rice. Hoppin' John, pawpaw casserole and fish chowder are also specialties of Bermuda. As most ingredients used in Bermuda's cuisine are imported, local dishes are offered with a global blend, with fish as the major ingredient, in any food eaten at any time.
Qurabiya also ghraybe, ghorayeba, ghoriba, ghribia, ghraïba, gurabija, ghriyyaba,, kurabiye, or kourabiedes and numerous other spellings and pronunciations, is a shortbread-type biscuit, usually made with ground almonds. Versions are found in most Arab, Balkan and Ottoman cuisines, with various different forms and recipes. They are similar to polvorones from Andalusia.
Strawberry cake is a cake that uses strawberry as a primary ingredient. Strawberries may be used in the cake batter, atop the cake, and in the frosting. Strawberry cakes are typically served cold.
Clementine cake is a flourless cake flavored primarily with whole unpeeled clementines and almonds. It may originate from an orange cake in Sephardic cuisine. In popular culture, the cake played a minor part in the plot of the 2013 film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.