Recipe: Milk And Honey Cake
I’m always on the hunt for simple cake recipes as I usually, tardily, begin baking in the late afternoon, often for a potluck that evening. This was back when we shared meals and hosted parties. Now it’s just us two sharing, so that cake can’t be too large or need frosting or need too many ingredients.
Deliciously fitting the bill is Francesca’s Milk and Honey Cake, from the season’s sweetest new cookbook, “A Good Meal is Hard to Find: Recipes from the Storied South“ by Amy C. Evans and Martha Hall Foose. Amy painted the wry illustrations and Martha developed the recipes. Together they created the snapshot stories for the recipes, each introducing us to a fictional Southern character with a wonderful name. There’s Ouida’s Buttered Pimiento Souffle, illustrated with a jar of pimientos, a bobby pin and a pink foam roller, and Etta’s Third-Date Chocolate Brandy Pudding, prepared in anticipation of special evening. For Francesca’s Milk and Honey Cake, we’re told Francesca’s mother believed honey was “nature’s miracle.”
Mother was right. Honey is a miracle. So is this gorgeous cake. Any honey will work. The second time, I baked it with garam masala-infused honey which added a subtle spice. A friend gave me that jar, a gift from her son’s girlfriend. My friend figured she had no use for it. She does now, but I’m not giving it back. If your honey has crystallized, use it as is. It might take a little more stirring to mix into the milk but it works just fine.
Milk and Honey Cake
Makes one 8-inch cake, about 6 servings.
Adapted from “A Good Meal is Hard to Find: Storied Recipes from the Deep South” by Amy C. Evans and Martha Hall Foose.
½ cup whole milk
½ cup honey
½ teaspoon almond extract
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup granulated unrefined cane sugar
2 large eggs
Powdered sugar for dusting, if desired
1. Heat your oven to 350°F. Butter an 8-inch square baking dish and set it aside. (I used a 9-inch round cake pan.)
2. In a bowl, combine your milk, honey and almond extract. In a separate bowl, whisk together your flour, baking powder and salt.
3. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the butter at medium speed for 2 minutes, or until creamy. Gradually add the granulated sugar and beat for 5 minutes more, until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, letting the first fully incorporate before adding the next.
4. Turn the mixer speed to low and alternately add the milk mixture and the flour mixture. Beat just until the batter is smooth.
5. Scrape the batter into the prepared dish and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the cake springs back when lightly touched and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Let cool, then slice and serve with a dusting of powdered sugar.
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