spice cakes

Spice cakes are probably the coolest things in the world, and are the closest thing to an open bag of salt and pepper potato chips (aka: crack) to my non-sweet tooth. When made well, they are lightly scented with a balanced blend of spices and are tender to the tooth. When made poorly, they are borderline bitter and please-soak-me-in-milk dense. For the record, I'd like to say: if I made a bitter, dense cake, I would be really disappointed in myself and write a blog all about taking my penance like a woman and eating it anyway.
Again, from Gourmet (RIP), I found a recipe for a spice cake with caramelized pears and maple buttercream frosting. Just saying that whole thing, let alone typing it and, no need to mention, making it, is work. Phew, I'm tired already.
So, what do I do than what I know how to do best? I changed the recipe around. I made the cake batter exactly as it was written, but: caramelized apples instead of pears, used my mini bundt cake pans instead of making 3 8" rounds and doused them with rum syrup I infused with orange zest instead of making the buttercream. I also baked the apples into the bottom of the bundts. Mmm hmmm. Totally.
(those chunks there? apples.)

For caramelized apples:

• 2 1/4 pounds Granny Smith and Gala apples (about 5)
• 1/2 stick unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons brandy

Caramelize apples:
Peel and core apples, then coarsely chop.
Heat butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until foam subsides, then sauté apples, stirring occasionally, until just beginning to brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in sugar, lemon juice, and brandy and cook over high heat, stirring, until juices are deep golden and apples are tender, about 5 minutes.


For spice cake:

• 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 5 large eggs 
  

Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Butter and flour cake pans.
Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and spices in a large bowl. Stir together milk and vanilla in a small bowl.
Beat butter and sugars with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. At low speed, mix in flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with milk mixture (begin and end with flour mixture) and mixing until just combined.
Here, you can either add the apples to the batter or save them as a filler if you choose to make the cakes round. Divide batter among pans, smoothing tops, then rap pans once or twice on counter to eliminate any air bubbles. Bake until pale golden and a wooden pick inserted into center of cakes comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool in pans on racks 10 minutes. Run a thin knife around edge of pans, then invert cakes onto racks. Reinvert and cool completely.

For rum syrup:

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup rum
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1/2 teaspoon orange zest

Place the ingredients in a small saucepan over low heat. Allow to simmer one minute, cover and simmer an additional 3 minutes.
When the cake comes out of the oven, immediately poke holes throughout the bottom with a toothpick or skewer. Brush half of the syrup onto the cake and allow it to cool for 10 minutes. Invert the cake onto a greased cooling rack and poke holes in the top side, then brush it with the remaining syrup. After they cool, you can wrap the cakes and serve them 24 hours later if you like.

I wanted to make a simple icing for them, like a cream cheese gooey mess that would pour over the sides...but I didn't have the ingredients. Not one, tiny smattering of confectioner's sugar in the house. HARUMPH!! But, alone, they were still pretty tasty. Especially with a Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale.

Stay tuned for the next making of this cake...I have some incredibly festive ideas you won't want to miss - especially if they fail as failure makes my writing hilarious.