“Rosemary is an herb that has long been associated with remembrance and death. Since ancient Roman times when the herb was used in burial rites for this reason, to several accounts of funerals in England where mourners traditionally tossed bouquets of rosemary on top of coffins. In this respect, rosemary is probably best associated with Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Act 4, Scene 5; “Ophelia in her madness names plants that were known for their capacity to ease pain, particularly inwardly felt pain” [1] – “There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance; pray, love, remember.””
I have borrowed these words from the blog Nourishing Death nourishingdeath.wordpress.com/…/rosemary-thats-for-remembr…/
and baked my own Rosemary Cake…
170g butter (room temperature)
170g golden caster sugar
3 medium eggs
200g self-raising flour
50g ground almonds
2 teaspoons of (very) finely chopped rosemary
Zest and juice of 1 (unwaxed) lemon
A few tablespoons of icing sugar
Preheat oven to gas mark 3/160ºC (140ºC fan oven). Place butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl and beat until the mixture becomes pale, light and fluffy.
Gradually beat in eggs one by one, then fold in flour, ground almonds, rosemary and lemon zest.
Spoon mixture into a loaf tin lined with baking parchment and bake for 1 hour until risen and firm to touch. Cool in the tin for 15 minutes, turn out onto a wire wrack and allow to cool completely.
To decorate, mix a few tablespoons of sieved icing sugar with a few drops of lemon juice and spread onto the top of the cake. Decorate with a sprig of rosemary and enjoy a slice with your favourite cuppa.
A little rosemary goes a long way, so two teaspoons of very finely chopped rosemary leaves give a subtle taste.
