Breadfruit Buttermilk Honey Cake Recipe | The African Gourmet

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Breadfruit Cake Recipe

After learning all about breadfruit make a very simple frosted breadfruit honey cake recipe anyone can make. There are as many ways to cook breadfruit but a few breadfruit basics are important for making breadfruit recipes. Follow these basic breadfruit usage tips any time you prepare your fresh breadfruit.

Easy Breadfruit Buttermilk Honey Cake Recipe | The African Gourmet

This breadfruit dessert connects directly to the wider history of African crops and ingredients. Explore more about the plant itself in our African plants and ingredients hub and learn how breadfruit fits into long-standing traditions through our African tree and plant lore collection. You can also browse more regional dishes in our African Cuisine hub.

Frosted Breadfruit Buttermilk Honey Cake Recipe

Breadfruit is a multipurpose tree and all parts of the tree are used. The leaves of the breadfruit trees are used as fans sandpaper for fine woodwork, to wrap foods, and as plates. Breadfruit is cooked and eaten green, mature or ripe. Do not overcook or breadfruit will become mushy and waterlogged.

Breadfruit Basics

Wash

Washing breadfruit before cooking removes sap. Breadfruit contains a small amount of white sap, which can stick to knives, pots and steamers. If fruit oozes sap upon cutting, a piece of cardboard placed over the cutting board keeps it clean. Utensils resist sticky sap when sprayed with a non-stick oil or rubbed with cooking oil. Sap that sticks to kitchen equipment can be removed with oil and a scrub brush followed by washing with dish soap in hot water.

Remove Stem

Twist or snap off the stem and turn the fruit upside down will allow any sticky sap to drain out.

Cut

Breadfruit is a multipurpose tree and all parts of the tree are used

Cutting the off the top of the fruit where the stem sticks out makes a flat spot to stand the fruit on end, and prevents rolling or slipping when making the next cut. Quartering or cutting to smaller chunks makes the fruit makes it easier to steam and boil.

Core

Coring the fruit means removing the fruit’s hard central core. This can be done before or after cooking.

Peel

Peeling the skin can be done before or after cooking, but skin will be much easier to remove post-cooking with a paring knife or peeler.

Stages of Breadfruit ripeness

The stages of a breadfruit are commonly referred to as immature, mature or ripe.

Immature breadfruit

An immature breadfruit is small, bright green in color with white-green flesh, and will leak a sticky, whitish sap when cut. Immature breadfruit is boiled, pickled or marinated. However, immature breadfruit is rubbery and watery even when cooked, lacking the rich ­flavor and texture of mature fruit. An immature breadfruit will not mature or ripen after picking.

Ripe breadfruit is soft to the touch, with an aromatic smell.

Mature breadfruit

Mature breadfruit is starchy and firm. Depending on the variety, the skin will change from the bright green of an immature fruit to darker green, golden yellow, and even a rusty orange color. The flesh will be firm, with color from white to pale, creamy yellow. In the mature stage, breadfruit is the perfect substitute for any starchy root vegetable, and can be made into recipes such as French Fries. A  firm, mature breadfruit will ripen and become soft in 1–3 days at room temperature.

Ripe breadfruit

Ripe breadfruit is soft to the touch, with an aromatic smell. The creamy, sweet flesh can be made into beverages, pies, cakes, and other desserts, and is great food for babies. The peel is yellow-green to yellow-brown in color. This is the only stage where the fruit can be eaten raw, and the taste and texture is similar to custard.

Easy Breadfruit Recipe

Breadfruit Buttermilk Honey Cake

Ingredients:

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

1 cup ripe breadfruit mashed

1 cup honey

½ cup unsalted butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground all-spice

½ teaspoon salt

1/4 cup buttermilk

Directions:

Cream butter and honey add breadfruit, sugar and vanilla and mix well. Sift together dry ingredients. Add dry ingredients to creamy mixture; add buttermilk until well blended. Pour into buttered or sprayed 8-inch x 8-inch cake pan. Bake at 350º for 1 hour. Cool on a wire rack and frost with vanilla frosting.

Explore more sweet tropical flavors in the African Desserts Hub and learn about traditional baking in the African Recipes Collection.

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