Lemon Bundt Cake

Spring is in full swing in the Bay Area and I am here for it.  After the marathon baking I did in preparation for Easter I was looking for something delicious, yet simple to make and this Lemon Bundt Cake fits the bill.  I've made quite a few lemon cakes for this blog but surprisingly this recipe from Cook's Illustrated was one that I hadn't made before.   The cakes I've made previously had sour cream or cream cheese as an ingredient but this one has buttermilk which helps to create a tender texture. 

As is the case with any bundt cake,  a key to its success is ensuring the baked cake releases nicely from the pan.  I made sure to grease my fleur de lis pan really well with shortening and then coat it generously with a dusting of flour.  My cake released beautifully and you could really see the beautiful design too. 

This cake is really delicious and really doesn't want for anything.  The crumb was light and tender and there was plenty of lemon flavor.   I am definitely going to be making this again.

Crème Fraîche Poundcake

I bought a carton of crème fraîche as an impulse buy on a recent Costco outing but I had no clue what I was going to use it for.  As fate would have it the NY Times recently published a recipe for Crème Fraîche Poundcake.  It's like the baking gods were in my brain!

Crème fraîche is similar to sour cream but I find it's more stable and less water than it's American cousin.  It adds a really delicious tang to the poundcake, most especially in the glaze topping.  I found the cake to be even more delicious the day after it was made so it's a great make-ahead recipe.  

Yeasted Doughnuts

Deep fat frying at home is one of those things I've tended to shy away from.  Mainly because I hate the cleanup and then what to do with all that used oil afterwards?  However, one glance at the Yeasted Doughnuts recipe in the May/June 2020 issue of Cook's Illustrated magazine and all those concerns went out the window.  They looked A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!  Chalk it up to the COVID crazies but I even bought an electric deep fat fryer just so that I could make the doughnuts.

I don't have a huge sweet tooth (I normally prefer salty things) but I would never turn down a good doughnut.  My favorite kinds are powdered sugar, regular glazed or chocolate frosted (sometimes with sprinkles).  With the aid of my trusty stand mixer the dough came together quite easily.   The enriched dough rests in the fridge for up to 48 hours so this is a great make-ahead recipe.

 

Each recipe makes a dozen doughnuts and some little holes as well and I made two batches. For my doughnut flavors I went with classic glazed, chocolate frosted, coffee frosted and filled.  For some of the filled doughnuts I used homemade raspberry jam that I had made a few weeks ago.  Considering that I also love pineapple I couldn't let the opportunity pass me by to fill the rest with the most delicious pineapple filling.  Surprisingly though, out of all the flavors I think my favorite was the coffee frosted.  I'm not a huge coffee drinker but I loved how the bitterness of the espresso powder was a nice balance to the sweet frosting.

One bite of the glazed doughnut and I was in heaven!  It was so light and fluffy, exactly like what you would find in your local shop.   I ended up giving away the rest of the doughnuts to my friends because I was too afraid to keep them in the house, lest I eat more! 

Lemon Tea Cookies

My work had a team meeting at the Hyatt Regency in San Francisco recently.  It's an annual conference that's also one of the most anticipated events on my office calendar.  I always look forward to it because it's a chance to connect face to face with global colleagues who are based in North America, Europe and Asia. 

The catering at the hotel over the course of the three days was your typical fare, good but not spectacular.  However, the one thing I and many others absolutely loved were the lemon tea cookies the Hyatt served during a coffee break.  As soon as I took a bite of the soft, tender cookie topped with a thin layer of lemon glaze I knew I had to replicate it at home.  

 

Success all came down to getting the actual cookie, without the glaze, right.  The cookie itself reminded me a lot of a black and white in that it's texture was more cake-like.   I tried googling "Hyatt lemon tea cookie" in the hopes that someone may have posted the hotel's recipe online, but alas, no such luck and I was left to my own devices.

I ended up tweaking Cook's Country's Black and White Cookie and the results were fantastic.  By adding more flour to the recipe I got the thicker cookies I was looking for.  I also substituted lemon juice for the vanilla extract, but next time I think I'll use some lemon extract along with grated lemon peel to give it a real citrus punch.  The glaze couldn't be simpler, powdered sugar mixed with freshly squeezed lemon juice.   I don't think I'm bragging when I say I have a legitimate replica...eat your heart out Hyatt!

Deep Chocolate Sour Cream Pound Cake

A recent conversation between my friend and I:

B: "Next time you bake can you make something chocolate?  You know how much I love it."  

Me: "Hmmmm...I'll think about it."

Anyone who knows me well would not be surprised by my response.  Now don't get me wrong, I do like chocolate - especially the dark variety - but it's not my preferred flavor profile.  I tend to lean more towards vanilla, lemon and other fruits.  Despite my less than fanatical reverence towards all things cacao I ended up making this chocolate pound cake for a couple of reasons.  1) I was looking for an excuse to use this recently acquired Nordic Ware Party Bundt pan and 2) I had a ton of sour cream in my fridge.   

In retrospect I was doing myself a disservice by not making this cake sooner.  The recipe comes from Tish Boyle's The Cake Book, a must-have for any cake lover out there.  I've made several recipes from this book and none have disappointed. As promised by its title, this cake has deep chocolate flavor with a moist and tender crumb.   Utterly delicious!  While the cake is fantastic on its own it tastes even better when topped with the ganache glaze.  

I have a strong feeling B will approve.

Lemon Poppy Seed Sour Cream Bundt Cake

Could I think of a more superfluous name for this cake - Lemon Poppy Seed Sour Cream Bundt.  I admit it doesn't roll off the tongue so easily but I couldn't help myself, the name says it all.  The naissance of this beauty came from my desire to clear out my fridge of sour cream and lemons.  A rather inauspicious beginning I admit but at least it was a noble cause! 

Luckily for me the recipe is very straight forward and comes together in no time at all.   This is the second bundt cake I've made in a week.  While I love how simple and nostalgic they are, I do confess it's the cake pan that I'm a bit more obsessed with.   My favorite is this one by Nordic Ware...a true gem in any baker's kitchen.

I will pay this cake the ultimate compliment by saying it's as if it came from the box.  What?@!  Yes, you read correctly and it's no joke!  What I mean is that the texture is amazingly moist and tender, not dense and heavy like you find most bundt cakes to be.   My only critique is that I want MORE lemon flavor so next time I think I'll brush on a lemon infused simple syrup while the cake is still warm but before it cools and is glazed.  

Orange Chiffon Cake

After much success with the coffee version I have to say I'm on a bit of a chiffon cake kick.  I just can't seem to get enough of this delicious, light and fluffy cake.  So when I was visiting my parents this weekend and saw the gleaming, ripe oranges hanging from their backyard tree I instantly knew what the next chiffon flavor should be.

The only tweak I made to the Cook's Illustrated recipe was adding a tablespoon of orange zest to the glaze.  It was my humble attempt to replicate the icing that came with Pillsbury Orange Sweet Rolls, one of my favorite breakfast treats when I was a kid. 

TWD Lemon Loaf Cake

When I submitted my blog in the drawing to host this week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe I was really hoping it would be chosen.   I love all things citrus and Lemon Loaf Cake was right up my alley.   

As soon as I found out Treats was one of the two blogs that were randomly chosen I immediately called my sister-in-law to ask for lemons.  A massive meyer lemon bush divides her driveway from the next door neighbor's so an abundance of fruit is literally at her fingertips.

 

As I read through the cake recipe I was pleasantly surprised to learn that its texture was similar to a pound cake but that preparation was all done by hand.  Any recipe where I don't have to bust out the KitchenAid stand mixer is an ideal one to me.

I took a little detour from the cookbook by brushing the baked loafs with a meyer lemon syrup and then topping with a meyer lemon glaze and candied meyer lemon slices - a triple citrus threat if I ever saw one.   Even with the addition of the lemon syrup I found the cake itself to be a tad bit dry but still delicious nonetheless.

Michelle from the blog The Beauty of Life is my fellow co-host for this week's recipe.

Clementine Loaf Cake

I know it's winter when stores start stocking Cuties California clementines.  I love them!  My mom says that when I was a kid I used to eat oranges like a fiend so it's no surprise that Cuties are one of my absolute favorites. 

The December 2011 issue of Everyday Food featured a tangerine cake with citrus glaze on the cover and I knew I had to try it with the Cuties.  They baked their cake in a bundt pan but I went with small loaf pans which are the perfect size for gift giving.  

The cakes turned out slightly dry so next time I'm going to poke holes all over the tops then brush them with a clementine-infused simple syrup before pouring on the glaze.