Spicy Lemon Slice Cake

Who doesn’t remember those wonderful slices of jelly-like citrus candies coated in sparkling sugar? I loved them then, and I love them now!lemon slices for blog

My daughter and her family was here visiting last week, and it was my son-in-law’s birthday. He fondly remembers a spice cake his grandma used to make, covered with lemon icing. We happily obliged, and created this cake:Chris and cake

I neglected to take photos during the creation of the cake, and there was a thing or two I wanted to do differently, so today I baked another version…and am thrilled with this recipe. Lemon added to the cake batter gave a subtle but pleasing flavor, and doubling the cinnamon was the right thing to do.

spicy lemon slice cake vertical

I like to toast and grate/grind my own spices for more intense flavor. You’ll find simple instructions in my post for Extra Spicy Gingersnaps, though you won’t need the cloves. About five whole allspice, a nutmeg (you won’t use it all…just grate 1/4 teaspoon and save the rest for another time), and two 3-inch cinnamon sticks should be just about right for this recipe. If this doesn’t appeal to you, by all means use store-bought spices!

I didn’t have yellow sugar for the first cake, but regular sugar colored with yellow food coloring worked well. This time I bought the real stuff. It’s a little challenging to apply to the cake (hahahahaha….just wait), but  jump in there and use your hand to pat it on the icing…and figure on a lot of spillage! If the cake is on a large piece of parchment or foil you will be able to easily collect the extra sugar and re-use it.

The nice thing is, the sugar coating makes the frosting kind of…well…touchable. You can pat and even up edges and corners if necessary.

Spicy Lemon Slice Cake
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Author:
You will need a 12-inch round cake pan for this recipe. Or...you COULD use two standard round pans and make a full lemon slice.
Ingredients
  • CAKE:
  • ½ cup vegetable oil (I used peanut oil)
  • ½ cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 6 eggs, separated
  • 1 small lemon, juice and zest
  • 1½ cup cake flour
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
  • ¼ teaspoon allspice
  • ½ cup greek yogurt
  • ¾ cup milk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • FROSTING:
  • 1½ cups (3 sticks) butter, softened
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 small lemon (juice and zest)
  • ½ teaspoon lemon flavoring (optional)
  • 2 pounds powdered sugar
  • ¼ cup heavy cream
  • Yellow sugar for decorating
  • Lemon slice candies for decorating, if desired
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 350 F.
  2. CAKE:
  3. Prepare a 12-inch cake pan (approximately 2 inches high) by lining bottom with a circle of parchment and spraying the sides with a flour and oil spray (like Baker's Joy). Alternatively, you can generously grease and flour pan.
  4. In a large bowl, preferably using a stand mixer, mix together the butter, oil, white sugar, and brown sugar. Beat for at least 2 minutes, until the mixture lightens in color.
  5. Add egg yolks, one at a time, mixing well and scraping the sides of the bowl between each addition.
  6. Add lemon juice and zest and mix until combined.
  7. In a separate bowl, sift together the cake flour, all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice.
  8. In a small bowl combine the Greek yogurt, milk, and vanilla.
  9. Beginning with the dry ingredients and ending with the wet ingredients, add alternately - one third of each at a time, scraping down the side of the bowl between each addition.
  10. In a small bowl, whip the egg whites until fairly stiff peaks form, but don't let the egg whites get too dry. Fold gently into the cake batter.
  11. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until cake comes away from the side of the pan and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle of the cake.
  12. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, and then turn out on a large cooling rack. Cool completely before frosting the cake.
  13. FROSTING:
  14. In a large bowl, beat the butter until soft and creamy. Add the vanilla, lemon juice, zest, and flavoring (if using) and mix until combined.
  15. Mix in the powdered sugar and beat well.
  16. Add heavy cream and beat for 3-4 minutes, until light and fluffy.
  17. ASSEMBLY:
  18. Cut the cool cake in half. Generously cover one half with frosting and set the other half on top to create a half-slice appearance. Place on a cake board or flat plate.
  19. Cover the cake with a thin coat of icing and place the cake in the freezer for 30 minutes.
  20. Remove cake from freezer and cover completely with icing, reserving ½ cup of icing for piping/decorating.
  21. Place cake on large pan or piece of parchment and, using your hand, pat yellow sugar over entire cake.
  22. Place reserved frosting in a plastic zipper-type bag and snip off the tip. Pipe around bottom edge of cake and approximately one inch inside the top curve of the cake. (If frosting won't stick because of the sugar, use a small spoon or knife...or your finger....to scoop away a little of the sugar and icing, and then pipe.)
  23. Decorate with lemon slices if desired.

Adding yolks one by one. Batter should be light colored.

Adding yolks one by one. Batter should be light colored.

Beaten egg whites. See those soft, straight peaks?

Beaten egg whites. See those soft, straight peaks?

GENTLY fold egg whites into batter.

GENTLY fold egg whites into batter.

Cooling. Then cut right down the middle and stack with icing between layers.

Cooling. Then cut right down the middle and stack with icing between layers.

Adding a thin crumb coat of icing.

Adding a thin crumb coat of icing.

...and into the freezer for 30 minutes.

…and into the freezer for 30 minutes.

Frost cake and then patiently (!) add sugar.

Frost cake and then patiently (!) add sugar.

Use your hand to press against frosting.

Use your hand to press against frosting.

Use a pastry brush to "sweep" sugar onto paper and re-use.

Use a pastry brush to “sweep” sugar onto paper and re-use.

Use your finger or a wooden spoon handle to mark a white line.

Use your finger or a wooden spoon handle to mark a white line. Pipe icing if you wish.

slice of cake verticalI never would have thought to combine lemon with a spice cake, so I’m grateful to Chris’s grandma for giving him this wonderful memory. It’s now a favorite of mine…and I hope you will enjoy it too!

Lorinda

 

Huckleberry Buttermilk Scones



Huckleberry Scones watermarked

 

Huckleberry season came early this year in Eastern Washington, taking us a little bit by surprise. We missed the best picking but still came away with a couple of gallons of these precious gems.huckleberries july 16

If you’ve ever gone huckleberry picking, you’ll understand why I’m a sort of stingy with them. The three “B”s (bending, bees, and bears) make huckleberry picking a real labor of love. I make a small batch of jam each year, then usually just throw a handful into pancakes, muffins, cakes and breads.

As much as I love huckleberry pie, it’s hard for me to part with that many berries in one fell swoop. I like pie, but seriously? I’d rather turn those berries into margaritas! Mmmm….margaritas. Ahem. ‘Scuse me…I’ll be right back.

*Hic*

With just one cup of frozen huckleberries, you can make eight large (or twelve small) light, fluffy, buttermilk scones. Add a little huckleberry icing to drizzle over the top, and you’ll have all the wonderful huckleberry flavor you could want.

Huckleberry Buttermilk Scones
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Author:
Makes 8 large or 12 regular scones. Blueberries may be substituted for huckleberries if you wish. Make sure to use frozen berries!
Ingredients
  • 2⅓ cups all-purpose flour
  • ⅓ cup sugar
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 Tablespoon baking powder
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt (if using unsalted butter, increase salt to ¼ teaspoon)
  • ½ cup (1 stick) cold butter
  • ¾ cup buttermilk
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • juice and zest of one small lemon (approximately 1 tablespoon juice)
  • 1 cup frozen huckleberries
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 425 F.
  2. Place a piece of parchment on baking sheet. (Or lightly grease)
  3. In a large bowl, sift the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
  4. Grate the cold butter using a large-holed grater, and work the butter into the dry ingredients, using a pastry blender or your fingers. Make sure there are no large lumps of butter.
  5. Toss the frozen huckleberries in the flour mixture and set aside.
  6. In a glass measuring cup or small bowl, beat the buttermilk, egg, vanilla, lemon juice, and zest until well combined and frothy.
  7. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the liquid ingredients. Stir just until combined. Don't over stir.
  8. Spoon dough onto a floured surface and turn to coat. Don't knead the dough - just gather it into a ball and make sure the outside is covered with flour.
  9. *For 8 large scones: Pat into a flat circle about the size of your hand. Move to the parchment covered baking sheet. Gently flatten into a circle approximately 1-inch thick. Brush lightly with buttermilk and sprinkle with sugar, if desired.With a sharp, floured knife, cut into 8 wedges, lifting the knife straight up with each cut. Using a metal spatula, pull each wedge out slightly to leave a little space between each one. Bake for approximately 18-20 minutes, or until golden brown.
  10. *For 12 regular scones: Divide the dough into two pieces. Gently form each half into a ball and pat into 4-inch circles. Place on parchment covered baking sheet and gently flatten into circles about ¾-inch thick. Brush lightly with buttermilk and sprinkle with sugar, if desired. With a sharp, floured knife, cut each circle into 6 wedges, lifting the knife straight up with each cut. Using a metal spatula, pull each wedge out slightly to leave a little space between each one. Bake for approximately 16-18 minutes, or until golden brown.
  11. Move pan to a cooling rack and allow the scones to cool on the pan.
  12. Drizzle slightly warm scones with confectioners glaze. (Or add a little huckleberry jam or lemon juice to the glaze for more flavor.)
Here's what you'll need.

Here’s what you’ll need.

Grate COLD butter.

Grate COLD butter.

Toss the berries in the flour mixture.

Toss the berries in the flour mixture.

Lightly beat the liquids.

Lightly beat the liquids.

Mix liquids and dry ingredients. Easy, Tiger. Just barely combine them.

Mix liquids and dry ingredients. Easy, Tiger. Just barely combine them.

Coat dough with flour.

Coat dough with flour.

Flatten on baking sheet. Brush with buttermilk and sprinkle with sugar.

Flatten on baking sheet. Brush with buttermilk and sprinkle with sugar.

Cut into wedges. Separate slightly. Bake!

Cut into wedges. Separate slightly. Bake!

 



scones vertical

You can leave these plain or drizzle them with confectioners icing. I added a little huckleberry jam to mine to give it even more of a burst of flavor. If you don’t have jam, try this:

Slowly bring 1/2 cup huckleberries and 2 tablespoons sugar to a boil in a small pan. Whisk in 1 teaspoon cornstarch and let the mixture simmer on low for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Allow mixture to cool. Combine 1 tablespoon of this sauce with 2 tablespoons milk then whisk in enough powdered sugar to make a thick glaze. Use a ziploc bag with the tip snipped off to decorate the scones.

Making a tasty icing.

Making a tasty icing.

I know what you’re going to ask. I do!  Yes, you can substitute blueberries for huckleberries. I’d recommend the frozen wild blueberries though, because they are so flavorful.

If I didn’t love huckleberries so much, I’d cave in and use blueberries – but I am willing to ignore my fear of bears (I carry bear spray), my problematic ankle (I destroyed it huckleberry picking two years ago and have to wear a brace and be very, very careful) my hatred of yellow jackets (I wear unscented everything and dress in neutral colors) and the back breaking bending and squatting that goes with the experience, because there is just nothing like a wild huckleberry!

Sounds like fun, huh? But OH so worth it.

Have a margarita scone and see for yourself!

Lorinda