Well, it seems that this is turning into a cooking 'blog. That's prefectly fine with me, as cooking is really fun! I still suck at it, of course, but I'm trying to learn from my mistakes (like 1 cup of lemon juice is always too much. Unless, maybe, you're making lemon curd). Anyway, I tried this Orange Cake recipe from Good Eats the other day, and I think it turned out pretty well.
- 1 cup orange blossom honey
- 4 large eggs
- 1 tbsp orange zest
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 pinch baking soda
- Butter, for greasing
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- In large bowl, whisk together honey and eggs until thoroughly integrated. Stir in orange zest.
- Soft together flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Add slowly to egg mixture
- Lightly grease a loaf pan with butter. Add the mixture to the pan and bake. After 30 minutes check for doneness with a wooden skewer. If it doesn't come out clean, give it another 5 minutes
The orange blossom honey I found at Wild Oats. It was a bit expensive, and I'm not altogether convinced that it really adds that much to the flavor. I think maybe a bit more orange zest could make up the difference, if you end up using wild-flower honey.
I also had a little trouble with the cooking time. Even after 40 minutes, the top of the cake hadn't set up completely, or so it seemed to me at the time. After 45 minutes it was done, but I think I overcooked it a little; a mistake I think I make too often. I remember hearing that you really have to take it out of the oven before its done, but when I put the toothpick in after 40 minutes, it still came out with some cake on it.
It is pretty tasty, and the honey keeps it moist (as honey is hydrophilic, it absorbs moisture from the air).
"Buffer, for greasing"... someone's been programming too much. ;)
HAHAHA. Oh man, that was classic. (I fixed it though)