Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Lemon Lavender Bundt Cake

Once again, after returning home from Dubai and with new spices in hand, I was on the lookout for recipes in which to use them.  I had used the hot paprika already, but had yet to use the lavender.  This had to change, and the Lavender Lemon Bundt Cake was the perfect inspiration!

Bundt Cake
It's been ages since I have made a cake - it's not something I tend to bake because I don't like to have it tempting me in my house (or my office!).  Something about this Lavender-Lemon bundt cake however, called to me.



The Necessities (adapted from Williams-Sonoma)

  • FOR THE CAKE
  • 3 cups cake flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 16 Tbs. (2 sticks) unsalted butter (room temperature)
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 Tbs. dried lavender flowers
  • 4 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1/2 tsp. lemon zest (extract if you have it)
  • 1 cup plain yogurt
  • 1 Tbs. finely grated lemon zest

The Ingredients
Lavender from Dubai - How Pretty!?
I first beat the butter until it was creamy and smooth, about 30 seconds.  I added the sugar and lavender and continued beating it until it was light and fluffy - about 5 minutes.

Sugar and Lavender
Creamed butter...
Once fluffy I added the eggs, beating them until fully incorporated.  I then slowly added the dry ingredients that I had combined in a separate bowl, and alternated it will the yogurt.  I made sure each added bit was completely mixed in before adding any more.  Finally, I added the lemon zest and folded it in, trying to make sure it spread evenly throughout the batter.

Adding some lemon zest...
I spooned the batter into the bundt pan, making sure I had greased and floured the pan higher than the batter line.  I popped it in a 325 degree oven for an hour, and once it was done, I allowed the it to sit right-side up on a wire rack for 15 minutes to cool.

Prepared pan...
Allowed to cool out of the pan...
While it was just about done, I needed to prepare the finishing touch - the glaze.

The Necessities...
  • 2 Tbs. honey
  • 1/2 cup sifted confectioners' sugar, plus more for dusting
  • 1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
Glaze Ingredients
I warmed the honey in a saucepan until it was nice and runny.  I added that to a small bowl with confectioner's sugar and lemon juice and stirred it up nicely.  When the glaze stirred to a clear color I brushed it over the entire cake.

Nice and Shiny!
After the cake was completely cooled, about 2 hours, it was time to get testing.

Piece of Cake ;)
The cake was fresh and delicious, light and fluffy - I swear cake flour really makes such a BIG difference!  I highly recommend using it in pastries.  The lemon flavor was definitely a bit stronger than the lavender, which could have been a bit stronger.  The cake itself was easy to pull together and reminded me why cakes are so worth making!

Do you use Cake Flour?  What's your favorite recipe to use it in?

7 comments:

  1. I haven't baked with lavender yet but I def want to try it. Cakes are definitely always worth making in my book. Especially if they use cake flour. It just makes everythings so light and fluffy.

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  2. This is so beautiful! I love lavender in baked goods (and cocktails!) but have not used it myself yet.

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  3. Oooh I LOVE this! I used a lot of lavender from my garden last summer (mostly cocktail infusions and cookies) -- baking bundt cake is such a great idea. I want a slice of this for breakfast :)

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  4. That lavender is gorgeous!!! What an awesome souvenir.

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  5. This looks and sounds really amazing. I have a big container of culinary lavender I still have yet to use - I'm a bit intimidated to be honest - but this might be a great first recipe!

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  6. I haven't cooked with cake flour OR lavender. I used to love these lavender candies my parents used to get when I was a kid, so I have a feeling this would taste really nostalgic to me!

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  7. Looks awesome! Usually when I buy ingredients on trips, I let them sit in the pantry forever because I'm afraid to use them up. So great to see you using all your new spices and such!

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