Lemon Loaf Cake for Tuesdays with Dorie

I am not one to stir the spiritual pot with (almost) anyone except my husband. Him and I agree on the level, conversations of this sort are challenging and exploitative, healthy and enlightening. I was raised Baptist by my Grandma, I was educated and exposed extremely liberal at Fairhaven College, I married a Texan with a very religious background. All pieces of a greater puzzle. My Sundays are spent in the woods riding bikes or connecting with nature in some fashion, needless to say I am usually trying to having a good time.

I take it all in, every ounce, every drip of knowledge. I have my believes, they make me want to be a better woman,  I have goals, I have believes, I have no ties.

I believe that a little sweat and hard work puts everything into perspective. This I do believe to be true.

As I said, miscarrying challenged my believes. I stood at a crossroads, questioning what I thought to be the truth, I was and continue to be flexible to my feelings and open to myself and the direction I needed to go, were we need to travel together as a couple. Miscarrying questioned my spirituality more than anything I have experienced to date.  I cursed everything, wanting a baby, even just the bump signifying a little one in our presence. Not this time.

All this being said, I know one thing, this was a little baby, created by two loving people hoping to spread more love and joy in the world. People try and console me(us) by reminding me that it was only ten weeks along. Ten weeks is enough to process this life changing event, adjust the forecast and plan for something far greater than us, the parents. It was enough time to consider myself a mother, him a father, to tell friends and to get family in on the excitement. We were parents for a blink of the eye.

Losing this baby changed me. Changed me for the better, helped me grow but in the end I am not the woman I was five months ago or a year ago. I am softer, more loving, sensitive with a big heart. It hurts, it will always hurt, but there is a piece of my soul that will shine, knowing that someday, somehow I will meet our first child.

In many ways, this is the story about hope, the bolstering effect of positive thinking, and the small measures we take in good faith and the means in which we find to cope.

I am reminded that we all acquire our handicaps. Everyone has their reasons they believe what they do. Circumstances lead us here, where we are, where we need to be.

I challenge you to accept your circumstances. To understand your handicaps and know what they are, move with them without letting them hold you back. Bring your history with you in your back pocket, not a weight on your shoulder. I am different, yes, physically, mentally spiritually but in the end it is just the handicap that I play in life. No big deal, I just play right on through, baggage in tote.

With all this being said, I bring you lemon loaf cake. A slight comfort food. A pound cake of sorts, a beast all of its own. I love the bite of lemon, the soft chew of a pound cake. I love the recipe for a very simple reason, I mixed it with a whisk from start to finish, no harsh mixer, no loud noises.  A task I can do while my husband sleeps in the room next to the kitchen. A recipe I can make when someday our child sleeps soundly as I make us a casual treat. A whisk.

I made this for the the lovley group Tuesdays with Dorie. Please visit the other host for the week, Truc of Treats.

LEMON LOAF CAKE

From Baking with Julia

This recipe begs for poppyseeeds or maybe even a few pinches of cardamom. Don't over think it because like most things in life, simple is okay.


Serves 12-15

4 large eggs at room temperature
1 1/3 cup sugar
pinch of salt
Zest of 3 large lemons
1 3/4 cups cake flour
1/2 t baking powder
1/2 cup heavy cream at room temperature
5 1/2 T unsalted butter melted and cooled to room temperature

Preheat the oven with a rack in the center to 350 degrees. Butter and flour or line with parchment a 9 by 5 inch loaf pan.

Working in a large bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar, and salt for just a bit until foamy and smoothly blended; the mixture should not thicken. Whisk in the lemon zest.

Spoon the flour and baking powder into into a sifter and incorporate about a third of the dry ingredients over the foamy egg mixture. Whisk the flour into the eggs, mixing lightly. Sift the flour into the eggs in two more additions and mix only until everything is Incorporated. Whisk the heavy cream into the mixture. Switch to your favorite rubber spatula and quickly fold in the melted butter.

Pour and scrape the the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 50  - 60 minutes or until until the center of the cake crowns and a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.  Place the cake on a cooling rack and rest for 10 minutes before unmolding. Cool to room temperature and slice.

Once cooled the cake can be stored wrapped tightly in plastic wrap for up to  days or stored in the freezer for up to a month.

Lemon Cream Cheese Cookies

So I might have forgot baking soda once. Turns out leavening is kind of important to the consistency of baked goods especially when you want an airy moist cake.

I might have asked the chef how to frost a cake. For real.

She might have taught me some very valuable tricks of the trade. Even better.

Never be afraid to ask questions.

I might have made the same recipe twice in one day and both times it turned out awful.

Never label a recipe fool proof. Never.

I made cupcakes two days in a row, both times they overflowed and looked laughable.

Never give up.

I have to laugh at myself. I love it, I learn, I move on. 

I feel really stoked that I can make a few recipes from memory.

I smile.

My tart shells often leak. Tarts are gorgeous but not when they leak.

I love the word tartlette.

Never forget the salt. Always use real butter. Cream is nice. Buttermilk is awesome.

Each weekday morning I put my crazy curly hair in a high bun, run some mascara through my eyelashes at an unruly early hour and tip toe out of the house trying my hardest not to wake J.  Most days are smooth, I soak up all that I can, committing it to memory and making notes in an ever growing baker's binder. Creativity and craftiness.  I pull things out of the oven beaming with excitement, proud. I dance. There is laughter and smiles.

I pulled these cookies out of the oven, arranged them nicely and watched as they all were given good homes in warm bellies.

 Lemon Cream Cheese Cookies

Get creative and spin these tangy cookies with zest of oranges or limes. Try chocolate. How about cinnamon or cardamom. Please do tell me what you try!

8 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

3 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

zest of 1 lemon

1 cup sugar

1 cup all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Pre heat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt.  Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment add butter cream cheese, lemon zest and sugar. Cream on medium speed until slightly more pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

Stop the mixer, add the flour.  Mix on low speed until dough comes together. 

On parchment lined cookie sheets place walnut sized balls of dough 2 inches apart.

Bake, 1 sheet at a time for 10 to 12 minutes. Don't over bake, the edges should be slightly golden.

Rosemary-Lemon Knot Rolls

Sometimes life feels like layers of complications, choices, questions, big life altering decisions.

Sometimes life does not follow the golden rule of moderation. 

Sometimes life does not play fair.

Adult problems. 

Traffic and cavities and getting laid off and never finding a job and houses and bills and friends and family drama. 

Pile it on. More. More. More.

Complicated.  

It happens.

It happens to the best of us. EVERYONE. 

Adult size decisions are rewarded with adult size rewards. 

Our reward is out there, just waiting for the perfect timing.

Patience.

Uncertain times tests my will power, I give in. Guilt is so 1990's. I give in to fresh warm bread straight from the oven. Just try worrying while eating fresh bread, impossible.

 

This bread is aromatic, twisted, simple. Knotting the bread distracts you from far more complicated things such as gainful employment and other big adult size problems. Worrying is for the birds (employment, not my bread!). Birds don't worry, they fight back.

 

Rosemary-Lemon Knot Rolls

recipe adapted from Donna Hay's and ELRA

makes 8

2 teaspoons dried yeast

1 cup (250ml) warm water

2½ cups (375g) bread flour

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 tablespoon olive oil

a few sprigs of finely chopped rosemary

Zest from half lemon, or more

For sprinkling and brushing

1/2 tsp finely chopped rosemary

1/2 tsp coarse sea salt

1 tsp olive oil

Place dried yeast, flour, rosemary, lemon zest and sea salt in a mixer bowl. Using a spoon mix this ingredients together, then add water, and olive oil. Knead using a dough hook attachment on low speed for 5 to 10 minutes until the dough is elastic. Turn off the machine. Gather the dough into a ball, place it in a lightly grease container, cover, let rest for an hour.

Take the dough out from container, fold onto itself once. Divide into 8 equal portions, roll into ball, place it on a baking sheet.  Repeat with the rest of the dough in the same manner. Cover the rolls with clean kitchen towel, let rest for an hour. If you want to  shape  it into knot rolls instead of round rolls, check out this video on how to.

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Mix finely chopped rosemary, and coarse sea salt in a small bowl. Set aside.

Just prior to load the rolls into oven, brush each with olive oil, then sprinkle some rosemary mixture. 

 

Bake 15 to 20 minutes until golden.

 

For Yeastspotting and Meatless Mondays

Silky Lemon Olive Oil Cake

 Hello my friends! I am full of great information today - you are lucky.

 Like this bit of worldy knowledge:

If you really want to do something sweet, bake a cake for someone.

Make it a super simple cake, like this one, requiring little time, everyday ingredients and relies on fresh fruit for flavor.  It is summer and you have things to do other than keep warm in the kitchen like you have been doing all winter. People to save, galaxies to discover, weeds to pull.

Next time you smell the sweet aroma of a BBQ, you know what to do. I am providing you with the tools to make your summer very successful. Bake a cake and go make new friends. Life is going to be easy! You are also going to want to tuck a bottle of this wonderful Washington wine under your other arm. Bernard Griffin Rose of Sangiovese wins awards and will please everyone.

Rose and lemon cake..... it will work, promise.

You know it is summer, there are plenty of parties where you want to show up with something sweet, not from the deli counter. Considered yourself prepared and stop all the fussing.

Everyone loves gifts and presents that are edible, you just win every time. Make a cake with bright fresh fruit that pops with color and brighten every one's day.

When J had a birthday on Monday I knew that he would not be into something overly sweet and totally turned off by elaborate, honestly he didn't even want cake. I wanted cake. I wanted a silky smooth bright cake. I knew he would love this simple loaf that packs the flavorful in full force with out gagging on sugar. If fruit was in season I would have spiked it with some berries. Don't fuss that there is no berries in season or that the last of the frozen blueberries went into last week's smoothie, the lemon cake can pull it's own weight.

You are going to be okay, you have a perfect summer time cake.

Silky Lemon Olive Oil Cake

Inspired by Smitten Kitchen and adapted loosely from Ina Garten,

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup sour cream
1 1/3 cups sugar, divided
3 extra-large eggs
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest (approximately 2 lemons)
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup olive oil
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease the pan.

Sift together 1 1/2 cups flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl.

In another bowl, whisk together the sour cream, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, vanilla and olive oil.

Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 (+) minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

When the cake is done, allow it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before flipping out onto a cooling rack. Carefully place on a baking rack over a sheet pan. While the cake is still warm, pour the lemon-sugar mixture over the cake and allow it to soak in.

Cool.

This cake is wonderful the first day when there is a paper thin shell of sugar coating over the top of the cake.