Kuwait is a small country, but the flavors that come out of it are anything but small! One delicious treat from Kuwait is saffron cake. Luckily, it's easy to make by customizing a yellow cake mix.
Ingredients
- Yellow cake mix (along with anything the box requires, like eggs, water and oil)
- 2 1/2 Tablespoons of flour
- A small pad of butter, enough for buttering the pan
- 2 1/2 teaspoons of saffron, plus a little extra for serving
- 1/4 teaspoon of ground cardamom (optional)
- 1 cup sweet and condensed milk
- 1 cup evaporated milk
- 2 cups milk
- 2 cups cream
- 1 pack of powdered whipping cream
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
Steps
Part 1
Part 1 of 3:
Preparing
-
1Preheat the oven. Set your oven to the recommended temperature on the cake mix box.
-
2Prepare the saffron flavoring. To do this, put 1 teaspoon of saffron in the amount of water the cake box asks for, making sure the water is warm and stirring until the water turns yellow. This will make the saffron flavor and coloring in the cake more intense. If your cake mix does not ask for water, you can skip this step. Advertisement
-
3Butter and flour the pan you are using. This is important to keep the cake from sticking to the pan. You can also use nonstick cooking spray instead, as long as the pan is coated properly.
- The exact dimensions of the pan do not matter, but use a rectangular pan, if you have one.
Advertisement
Part 2
Part 2 of 3:
Making the Cake
-
1Mix the yellow cake as instructed on the back of the box. Use some minor alterations to the instructions:
- When instructed to add the water, add the water saffron mixture you made earlier. If the recipe doesn’t call for water, add one teaspoon of saffron directly to the cake mixture.
- Add 1/4 teaspoon of cardamom if you want. This step is optional because it does not change the taste that much, and ground cardamom is hard to find in a lot of the grocery stores.
- After you finish mixing the basic cake mixture, add 2 tablespoons of flour. It is important for you to add the flour after you’re done with mixing the cake completely, because adding the flour will thicken the mixture to almost a doughy consistency, making it harder to mix. This step is important because it makes the cake denser and less crumbly, which will help the cake hold its shape when the sauce is added later on.
-
2Add the cake mixture into prepared pan. Pour the cake mixture until it reaches a quarter of the height of the pan. If more than that is added, the cake to sauce ratio will be off.
-
3Put it in the oven for the recommended time on the box. Check for readiness throughout the baking time.
- To check for readiness, insert toothpick into the cake when you think it might be done. If the toothpick comes out clean, it means your cake is ready.
-
4Make the tres leches sauce while the cake is in the oven. This sauce is a basic tres leches, or three milk sauce.
- Combine the 2 cups of milk with the 1 cup of evaporated milk and 1 cup sweet and condensed milk in a pot on medium heat.
- Keep whisking the mixture until it comes to a boil, being careful not to burn it.
- Turn off the heat and add one teaspoon of saffron, and whisk for 30 more seconds.
- This amount will only be enough for the cake to absorb. If you want some extra sauce on the side, don't be afraid to make extra with the ratio of 2 cups of milk to every 1 cup each of evaporated milk and sweet and condensed milk in mind.
- Be sure to use full fat milk.
-
5Take the cake out of the oven once it's done. Let it rest for 10-15 minutes. If you try to work with it too early, it will start crumbling.
-
6Add the sauce. After the cake has fully rested, make small holes by poking it with a toothpick or a wooden skewer. You want the saffron milk sauce to soak into the cake to make it moist and extra spongy. Pour the sauce over the cake.
-
7Put the cake in the fridge and let chill for at least 6 hours. You need the cake to become one with the milk mixture. This cake is like revenge, sweet and best served cold.
-
8Make whipped cream. To make the whipped cream, use 1 powdered whipped cream packet, 1/4 cup of powdered sugar, and 2 cups of cream. Mix them all together until soft peaks form and then chill in the fridge for about 30 minutes.Advertisement
Part 3
Part 3 of 3:
Serving
-
1Spread chilled whipped cream on chilled cake making an even layer. Add saffron as shown above, a pinch for each potential slice, and then chill in the fridge for 30 more minutes.
-
2Plate and serve. Cut the cake into squares and make sure to cut off the edges, so no brown pieces of cake show. This is for aesthetic purposes only. Serve cold in a bowl with some extra sauce, and a cup of coffee or tea, and enjoy. Advertisement
Expert Q&A
Ask a Question
200 characters left
Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.
Submit
Advertisement
About this article
Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 27,042 times.
Advertisement
90%
of voters found this recipe helpful
.
Click a star to add your vote
% of people told us that this article helped them.
