Yazdi Cupcakes
Ever in search of new and exhilarating cupcake recipes, I was interested when I found this recipe for Yazdi Cupcakes in New Food of Life: Ancient Persian and Modern Iranian Cooking and Ceremonies by Najmieh Batmanglij. She offers no description of it, just like everyone else who’s posted a version online of it that I could find, so I have no background to offer.
I was intrigued by the ingredients for a few reasons, though. I have plans to experiment with gluten-free flours, so I wanted to see how the 1/4 cup of rice flour would affect the finished product. I also wanted to see how the yogurt would affect what looks to be similar to a chiffon or sponge cake preparation. And what about the flavor? Would it be tangy, eggy sweet, nutty, rosey, or cardamom-y (quick, say that word out loud)?
They turned out spongy and a bit firm while still managing to be light on the tongue and not too sweet–the flavor leans more toward perfume than sugar. They looked so bare when I took them out of the oven that I had plans to whip up some cream (and infuse it with saffron, if I had any), but after I had my first bite, and as I ate more and more, I appreciated the flavor and didn’t want any silly whipped cream interference. The floral flavor catalyzed by the cardamom develops through the notes of pistachio and rose until it finishes with just a hint of butter-y richness.
It’s a nice snack for when I want a cupcake that comes with flavor and not a sugar high.
Yazdi Cupcakes
Adapted from New Food of Life: Ancient Persian and Modern Iranian Cooking and Ceremonies by Najmieh Batmanglij
Makes 8 servings [I made 12 cupcakes in my molds]
- 4 eggs, separated (room temp)
- 1 c sugar
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
- 1 c whole milk plain yogurt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 Tbs rose water (optional) [I used it]
- 1/4 c rice flour
- 2 c sifted all-purpose flour
- 2 tbs ground pistachios
Preheat oven to 350.
Blend egg yolks and sugar in a mixing bowl for 5 minutes until creamy.
Add melted butter, yogurt, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cardamom, rose water, and gradually add both types of flour; beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks and fold one third into the flour mixture using a rubber spatula before folding in the rest.
Pour the batter into individual cupcake molds, greased or lined with papers.
Sprinkle each cupcake with ground pistachios.
Place the cupcake pan in the center of the oven and bake for 20-35 minutes, or until golden [and a skewer comes out clean; mine took 20 mins]
Remove the cupcakes from the oven and allow to cool a little. Remove the cupcakes from the pan, and cool them on a wire rack. Store them tightly in an airtight container.
When ready to serve, arrange the cupcakes in a pyramid on a footed cake dish. Nush-e Jan!
March 25th, 2006 at 12:56 pm
Hey!
This is exciting! Trying out some of my peeps’ sweets! So I think the rose water and nut thing is pretty much a staple of Persian cookies/cake. Often pistachios, since we grow the best ones int he world, but almond and walnuts are also popular. There a few different types of cookies with rice flour, and though it’s not a staple, it’s definitely more common than it is here in the West. Congrats on a beautiful Persian cupcake!
March 25th, 2006 at 1:35 pm
Thank you! I’ve made some other good recipes from the book, too, but that was pre-blog, so I foolishly wasn’t taking pictures of everything I ate back then.
Dude, I so wanted to call you last night and ask what yazdi means and if you’ve had these cupcakes before, but I figured it was a bit too late. Yazdi either showed up as peoples’ last names, or just untranslated….
March 27th, 2006 at 7:58 am
These look terrific. I’m going to try making some in mini-cake pans, I think. I’m enjoying your blog.
March 27th, 2006 at 3:14 pm
[...] Since cakes are already full of butter, eggs, and sugar, I thought that a good goal was to make my pudding moist and smooth, without being too rich or sweet. Since the floral cardamom flavor was so pronounced in my Yazdi Cupcakes, I wanted a garnish that would match that, so I decided on a compote made with cherries and the remains of a Blueberry-Pom pomegranate juice drink in my refrigerator for the liquid. [...]
March 27th, 2006 at 6:08 pm
So the reason Yazdi comes up as a name or untranslated is that Yazd is an old historic city in Iran, located in the province by the same name. Most Iranian last names ust mean “of ” and Yazdi means “of Yazd.” After reading your blog, I looked Yazd up to see if I could find info about their agriculture (which would’ve better informed my comment about the ingredients) and though I didn’t succeed, I did learn that UNESCO recognizes Yazd as the worlds’s second largest city made of adobe (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yazd).
If you’re really going to become a yazdophile, let me recommend the official Yazd tourism page, too: http://www.yazdtourism.com/# And let’s both wonder why there’s a link to “FAMOUS MEN” but not women… or people… or Yazdis. I think I’m becoming some kind of feminist…
Take care!
March 27th, 2006 at 6:36 pm
Lindy - Thank you! I hope that you enjoy them. I think that the mini-cake pan is a great idea; I even toyed with the idea of baking mine in an 8″ round cake pan.
And I have to say, your blog is gorgeous. I’m so happy that I found it through your post. I also like the “Something Out of Nothing” idea. I already have a couple posts in mind, but I’ll see what I can come up with by April 2.
FattyPR - I suspected that it was either a region or a city!
And did you click on the “famous men” tab? It doesn’t go anywhere! hehe
In addition to the adobe factoid, I was intrigued by the following excerpt at that wikipedia posting. I think this explains the Yazdi Cupcake Info Cover-Up (even here, there are no details; and yet… I feel lured…):
Yazd’s confectionaries have tremendous following throughout Iran as a delicacy, and not just a form of sweet or sweetener. This has lured many visitors to Yazd to try them closer to their source. Workshops keep their recipes a guarded secret and there are many that have remained a private family business for many generations and often housed at the same workshop location. The scent, taste and texture of the confectionaries resounds an art form; the formal placing of each product on large platters which is done by the workshops in geometrical designs, patterns and sometimes into sculptures, reflect the high value given to these products.
April 22nd, 2006 at 1:21 am
TO NINA:
Yazdi is the name of a city in iran where these cakes originate from.
August 1st, 2006 at 2:11 am
Iran is an amazing Ancient Country
Yazd is Beautiful,
and Yazd Cupcakes are the most famous !
January 24th, 2008 at 10:50 am
Hey Nina
Yazdi is a province in Iran and this yazdi cupcake is originally from that place
January 24th, 2008 at 10:50 am
Hey Nina
Yazdi is a province in Iran and this yazdi cupcake is originally from that place
May 25th, 2008 at 2:33 pm
nice cake
June 2nd, 2008 at 11:17 am
Thanks a lot for sharing the recipe. I wish you all the best with your BonBonBar company.