Turmeric Citrus Snack Cake

A simple and vibrant snack cake, filled with earthy Lakadong turmeric, bright winter citrus, and tangy fresh ginger. Feel free to substitute any fresh citrus in place of the navel oranges–blood oranges, cara cara oranges, or grapefruit would also work beautifully in this recipe.

turmeric citrus snack cake

This recipe is sponsored by Living Roots USA. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the businesses who support Gathered At My Table!

Hi! Hello! It’s been quite a while since I’ve posted a recipe here on my blog. In case you are new around here (welcome!), I’ve spent the last couple of years working on growing my weekly newsletter where new recipes are delivered straight to your inbox every single week. (You can sign up for that HERE, if you’re interested). But over the last few months, I’ve been combing through old recipes from here on these old blog archives and I’ve discovered sometimes I really miss my old school blogging. I love this website dearly and I’ve spent about six years building it page by page and recipe by recipe.

This recipe was one I developed a few weeks ago with Jonali from Living Roots USA and while I may sound dramatic in saying this, the process was life-giving. Thanks to my tiny toddler sidekick, I’ve cut dramatically back on the client work that I take on and instead have spent the last year and half or so developing recipes with little baby hands grabbing and mixing, cramming all of my photo shoots into the very small nap time window each day, and writing and editing after bedtime or in stolen hours throughout the day. My days are full and I love it and I’m grateful for the opportunity to do creative work AND stay at home, but I would be lying if I said that there weren’t moments where I really miss having the time to dive in and get my hands dirty, both literally and creatively speaking.

When Jonali reached out to me, generously sharing her vision and spices with me over the phone, something sparked in my creative subconscious and I started brainstorming recipes that I was giddy about developing. A few weeks later, I received a little box of Living Roots spices in the mail. Living Roots is a small spice and tea company based in Los Angeles run by friends Jonali and John. Their spices are sourced directly from farmers in a “harvest to table” approach where they get to know farmers and their families and ensure that each spice and tea is cultivated with care and attention to detail all while ethically supporting indigenous farmers all over the world. The care and passion that Jonali and John have can be felt in every single thing that they do—you can hear it in their voices when they speak about their work and taste in their spices.

The Lakadong Turmeric is vibrant and earthy, rich and lush in color and flavor and it enhances the flavor of everything it is added to do. The Pampore Kashmir Saffron is fruity and sweet and I’ve used it in everything from our family Sicilian Chicken Soup recipe to ice cream and shortbread cookies. And the Tura Black Pepper is pungent and peppery, complementing the turmeric perfectly and bringing out sharpness in everything from steak au poivre to my morning fried eggs.

This cake was such a fun project for me—it’s simple and easy to make, using only a few bowls and a whisk and it feels like a burst of sunshine on a plate. There’s a ton of fresh winter citrus and tangy grated ginger, plus a few cranks of black pepper to really bring out the vibrancy of the turmeric.

It’s been a long time since I’ve fully been able to immerse myself in the creative process and this cake is not only delicious, but through the creating and testing and styling process of it, I bumped into a little bit of myself that I hadn’t seen in a while. I think that is what makes food and recipes and spices and all that goes with it so special—that a simple cake has the ability to showcase the hard work of women like P. Nongdkhar from West Jaintia Hills, Meghalaya, India while also helping women like me capture little pieces of themselves again.

Yield one 9" cake

Author Anna Ramiz

Prep time

15 Min

Cook time

40 Min

Total time

55 Min

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Turmeric Citrus Snack Cake

A simple and vibrant snack cake, filled with earthy Lakadong turmeric, bright winter citrus, and tangy fresh ginger. Feel free to substitute any fresh citrus in place of the navel oranges–blood oranges, cara cara oranges, or grapefruit would also work beautifully in this recipe.

Ingredients

for the cake

• 113 g (½ cup) unsalted butter
• 1 tsp Living Roots Lakadong Turmeric
• 100 g (½ cup) granulated sugar
• 54 g (¼ cup) brown sugar
• 1 tsp grated fresh ginger
• the zest of one medium navel orange*
• 250 g (2 cups) all purpose flour
• 1 ½ tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• ⅛ tsp freshly cracked black pepper
• 180 ml (¾ cup) buttermilk
• 80 ml (¼ cup) orange juice
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

for the glaze

• 1 medium navel orange, juiced and zested
• 1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
• ¼ tsp Living Roots Lakadong Turmeric
• 125 g (1 cup) powdered sugar
• 1-2 tbsp heavy cream

Instructions

to make the cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350° F and line a 9” round cake pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. In a small saucepan set over medium heat, combine the unsalted butter and Living Roots Lakadong Turmeric. Cook, swirling frequently, until the butter has melted and turmeric is fragrant, about 2-3 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl and let cool to slightly while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
3. In a large bowl, combine the granulated sugar, brown sugar, grated ginger, and orange zest. Use your fingers to rub the aromatics into the sugar until fragrant.
4. Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and black pepper to the bowl with the sugars and whisk until well combined.
5. In a large measuring cup or bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, orange juice, eggs, and vanilla until smooth.
6. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and whisk until no dry spots remain and you have a thick, smooth batter.
7. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 35-40 minutes, until the cake is deeply golden, the sides of the cake begin to pull away from the pan, and the center of the cake springs back when touched. Let the cake cool completely before glazing.

to make the glaze

1. In a small bowl, whisk together the orange juice, orange zest, melted butter, and Living Roots Lakadong Turmeric.
2. Add the powdered sugar and whisk until smooth, adding 1-2 tbsp of heavy cream as needed until the glaze reaches a thick, pourable consistency.
3. Pour the glaze over the cooled cake, using a spoon or an offset spatula to smooth it into an even layer. Garnish with orange slices if desired before slicing and serving.

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Grapefruit Meringue Tarts

A simple sweet crust, filled with a floral and tart grapefruit curd and topped with torched meringue.

I’m going to sound like a weirdo, but the idea for this recipe came to me from the sky. In early January, we began our drive back to Minnesota after spending the holidays with family. We had made our way from Florida to Tennessee to spend a day or two with my cousin and woke up before dawn to start our trek back to the north. This meant that I was driving through the Smoky Mountains as the sun began to peek over the tops of the trees. As we were winding down the steep mountain roads, light began to reflect off of the newly fallen snow and deep hues of pink and corals inked themselves across the sky. It was absolutely breathtaking and we drove for a bit in complete silence, soaking in the glow of the day beginning to unfurl itself across the sky.

And then, it made me think of dessert. The juxtaposition of the deep pink propped up against the sparkling white of the snow made me think of grapefruit and meringue, and because I was driving, I made Martin jot down a note in my recipe ideas folder of my notes.

Of course, as I began testing, I found that grapefruit juice isn’t quite vibrant enough to create a pink hued curd (a bit of a bummer), but I loved the flavor enough to stick with it so instead of pink and white, we ended up with a creamy yellow and white color palette. Not the color scheme I was initially going for, but a very delicious tart.

These grapefruit meringue tarts have three simple components: a crust, a curd, and a meringue.

the crust

For this recipe, I used my favorite sweet crust dough from Thalia Ho’s book, Wild Sweetness. It's similar to a pie crust, but we add sugar and use a softened butter instead of cold butter. The soft butter helps to create a crumblier dough that doesn’t need to be rolled out. Simply sprinkle it into the tart pans and press it into the sides.

After the tart pans are filled, we will chill the dough to allow it to set up and prevent melted butter from oozing everywhere when we bake. I like to pop the tray crust-lined tarts into the freezer for about 30 minutes, then dock them with a fork and bake until golden.

A note: If your crusts come out of the oven a little swollen and puffy, it’s okay! You can take a drinking glass or another flat-bottomed tool and press gently into the warm centers to push the dough down and make room for the filling.

the curd

The curd for this recipe is simple and can be made ahead of time. We start by simmering grapefruit juice with half of the sugar, just until hot and the sugar has melted. While that’s simmering, whisk together the rest of the sugar, cornstarch, zest, and salt in a large bowl. This will break any clumps of cornstarch. Add the eggs and yolks and whisk to form a paste. When the juice is hot, slowly temper it into the egg mixture, whisking continually, until all of the juice has been incorporated. Pour it all back into the pot and bring to a boil, whisking continually. Once the mixture boils, cook for 1-2 more minutes, to allow the cornstarch to cook out and the mixture to thicken, strain it through a sieve and whisk in the butter.

Since the curd is fully cooked, we’ll simply pour it into the cooled tart shells and let it chill until set.

the meringue

There are three main types of meringue: French, Swiss, and Italian. French meringue is made by whipping granulated sugar into egg whites and needs to be baked. Swiss is made by cooking egg whites and sugar over a double boiler and then whipping and Italian meringue whips egg whites with a hot sugar syrup.

For this recipe, we went with Swiss—my favorite. Swiss meringue follows a 2 parts egg whites to 3 parts sugar ratio so it’s very simple to scale up or down depending on your need.

After you make the meringue, you can swoop or pipe as much or as little as you want on top of your chilled tarts. You can use a torch to blister the edges for some added flair, or if you’re like me and your torch is packed in a box in storage, you can bake the tarts at 375° F for 10-15 minutes, until browned.

Yield 4

Author Anna Ramiz

Prep time

30 Min

Cook time

40 Min

Inactive time

4 Hour

Total time

5 H & 10 M

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Grapefruit Meringue Tarts

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A simple sweet crust, filled with a floral and tart grapefruit curd and topped with torched meringue.

IngredientsUSMetric

for the crust, from Wild Sweetness by Thailia Ho

• 1 1/4 cup (155 g) all purpose flour
• 2/3 cup (80 g) powdered sugar
• 1 tsp grapefruit zest
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 2/3 cup (150 g) unsalted butter, softened

for the grapefruit curd

• 3/4 cup (165 g) freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
• 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
• 3 tsp cornstarch
• Pinch of salt
• 1 tbsp grapefruit zest
• 3 large eggs
• 2 egg yolks
• 5 tbsp unsalted butter, softened

for the meringue

• 110 g egg whites (from 3-4 eggs)
• 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar

Instructions

to make the crust

1. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, powdered sugar, grapefruit zest, and kosher salt. Add the softened butter and use your fingers to work the butter into the dry ingredients until crumbly and well combined.
2. Divide the dough between the tart pans and press into an even layer along the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Freeze for 30 minutes, then dock with a fork.
3. Preheat the oven to 375° F. Bake the chilled tarts for 10-12 minutes, until golden brown. Let cool completely.

to make the curd

1. Combine grapefruit juice and half of the sugar in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium high heat and cook until sugar is mostly dissolved.
2. While the juice is cooking, whisk sugar, cornstarch, salt, and zest in a large bowl. Add the eggs and yolks and whisk again to form a smooth paste.
3. While whisking continually, gradually stream the hot liquid into the bowl with the eggs and sugar. When all of the liquid has been added, transfer the mixture back to the pot and return to the heat.
4. Continue cooking, stirring continually, until the mixture begins to boil. When it begins to boil, cook for 2 minutes more and then strain through a sieve into a clean bowl.
5. Whisk in the butter and let cool.
6. When the curd has cooled slightly, divide it between the tart shells and transfer to the refrigerator. Let chill for at least 4 hours, until curd is completely set.

to make the meringue

1. When you are ready to serve, make the meringue by combining egg whites and sugar in a large bowl set over a double boiler.
2. Cook, whisking continually, until the mixture is hot to the touch and all of the sugar has dissolved.
3. Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment and whip on medium-high speed until medium peaks form.
4. Top each of the tarts with meringue and torch, or bake at 375° F for about 10 minutes, until the edges are golden brown. If you decide to bake the tarts, let them cool completely before serving. If you torch the tops of the meringue, serve immediately.

Notes

This recipe is endlessly adaptable:

• If you don't have individual tart pans, you can make one 9" tart.
• Substitute any citrus in place of the grapefruit.
• Add an herb or floral component to the crust in place of grapefruit zest.

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Biscotti with Dark Chocolate, Hazelnuts, and Clementine

Crunchy, Italian-style biscotti studded with puddles of dark chocolate, toasted hazelnuts, and bright winter clementines. This simple biscotti recipe will make a perfect addition to your holiday cookie baking.

Making friends as an adult is hard. Moving to a new city and then making friends as an adult is even harder. Moving to a new city, running your own business completely from your home and then making friends as an adult is really really hard. So many of our relationships are built on shared experiences—there are friends you went to high school with, those you went to college with, and co-workers turned friends—but how do you find your people in an entirely new place when there aren’t many other people around to connect with?

This past six months in Minneapolis has been so much fun. We’ve gotten to explore a brand new city, eaten at so many new restaurants, enjoyed beautiful summer and fall weather, and so much more. But it’s also been really lonely at times. Since I work entirely from home as a freelancer and run a business that I built by myself, I’ve found it’s been a bit tricky to meet new people. I’ve made a few local internet-turned-real-life friends which has been really neat. In fact, in having coffee with Amanda from HeartBeet Kitchen, I met the very first person to have the same job as me and that was a super fun experience.

I’ve also been very blessed to have a husband with a job that involves people. His co-workers and their families have been so generous in helping us create a little home here in the North. Sometimes, it’s easy for me to give into to feeling sorry for myself. To break down and cry because I miss my people who now live thousands of miles away and because I feel like I can count all of my Minneapolis friends on one hand. But when I step back and think about it, I realize how lucky I am to have these few new friends because in the span of just a few months, they’ve turned into family.

It’s only a few times in your life where you meet someone and it’s instantly easy. It was easy when I met my best friend back on the first week of 10th grade and when I met my sorority sister turned real life sister-in-law in college. It was easy when I met my very best teacher friend on the first day of new teacher orientation my first year in Nashville and when we moved to Seattle where we found friends who we could make curry chicken tacos with on a Sunday afternoon in our pajamas. And lucky me, I found it again here in Minneapolis.

I’ve decided, as I get older, that I would way rather have a handful of friends that I can call no matter what, who can hang out on our couch and watch the Bachelorette or make biscotti with than a million acquaintances.

homemade Italian-style biscotti

My Minneapolis BFF and I had a cookie baking day last week where we used a ridiculous amount of butter and made a giant mess in my kitchen. Oh, and we made these biscotti.

These are a traditional Italian-style biscotti (adapted from Emiko Davies’ most recent book Torte Della Nonna), studded with toasted hazelnuts, clementine juice and zest, and big hunks of dark chocolate. They are super easy to adapt with whatever nut + citrus + chocolate combination you prefer and make a great Christmas cookie since they only get better as the days go by.

Like all Italian biscotti, these cookies are twice-baked. After mixing all of our wet and dry ingredients together into a fairly dense dough, we turn it out on a floured work surface and knead it a bit to make sure all of the flour bits are incorporated. Then we’ll sprinkle in our add-ins and knead it a bit more to ensure even distribution. The dough is then shaped into two rectangular logs, brushed with egg wash and baked until deeply golden brown. The logs cool for a few minutes and then we’ll use a sharp serrated knife to cut individual cookies. The long cookies are then baked again to ensure maximum crunchiness.

tips and substitutions

Maybe it’s the little Florida baby in me, but I love citrus season so much. There’s something about how in the darkest, coldest, parts of winter we get to reap the brightest bits of produce that just makes me giddy. I started seeing blood oranges and mandarins pop up in my grocery stores a few weeks ago, so you can bet that when I found a big bag of beautiful clementines, I jumped on it. You can easily substitute whatever citrus juice and zest looks the most exciting to you if you can’t find clementines.

I do have a small disclaimer about this recipe—slicing the biscotti will cause your chocolate to smear a bit. (This is why many biscotti recipes only incorporate nuts or dried fruits and then dip the cookies in chocolate after baking, but I really really wanted the chocolate scattered throughout). It’s inevitable that slicing the warm cookie log will cause the hot chocolate puddles to smear. I think it’s a small price to pay for having little pockets of chocolate studded throughout the final cookie, but if that really bothers you, you can absolutely omit the chocolate in the cookie dough and then melt your chocolate and dip your cooled cookies in it post-bake.