Google Persian Love Cake and you’re sure to find a hundred different variations. Some feature lemon juice and yoghurt. Some contain semolina, others ground pistachios. Some are gluten free. Some dairy free. You’ll even find some versions with nutmeg, in addition to the cardamom. Some versions feature a lemon syrup drizzle, while others (like this one) are done with an icing or glaze.

Apparently, as the story goes, the original Persian Love Cake was made by a girl who’d fallen madly in love with a Prince, so she made a beautiful cake with magical powers to make him fall in love with her. However, there are as many versions of the story as there are versions of the cake itself and so let’s not get caught up on the details, shall we?

I was eager to try this cake after buying a miniature version from Birdie Noshery & Drinking Est. in Orange over the weekend. Theirs was an orange and almond cake topped with fluffy icing and adorned with rose petals and pistachios.

I took inspiration for this Thermomix version from the clever folks at Taste. As a Thermomix owner, I’m always on the hunt for new recipes to ‘Thermify’ and love how easy it is to create all of the elements in just one bowl!

For this version I’ve used delicious Australian oranges, raw almonds, rapadura sugar (or brown if you prefer) and butter, but the highlight of this cake is the delightful pop of colour you get from the orange glaze with rose petals, slivered pistachios and orange rind.

This cake will be fine at room temperature for a couple of days, but can also be stored in the fridge.

You can source those beautiful rose petals and pistachios, as well as rose water, from a specialty store such as The Essential Ingredient.