Рецепт Winter Harvest Bundt Cake
Winter Harvest Bundt Cake
February 15, 2010 at 4:35 pm Jennie
It’s hard to do justice to this recipe in words. You really have to taste it to know how wonderful a cake made with honey, pumpkin, parsnips, carrots, buckwheat flour, buttermilk and dark chocolate can truly be. I don’t think I’ve ever come across a cake that is so moist and flavorful, yet so packed with vitamins and relatively void of fat as far as cakes generally go.
This little brain child of mine was inspired by a recipe two winters ago that I conjured up for Parsnip Spiced Cupcakes. I had more parsnips in my crisper drawer this winter, and I remembered how big a hit those cupcakes were so I thought perhaps I should make another batch to bus us through this blustery winter. As I was sorting through my root vegetable stash, I grabbed a few sweet carrots that are still going strong and thought I might as well add those to the recipe. When I spied the frozen pumpkin puree in the freezer, I knew the wheels in my head were turning a different direction, though obviously a baked moist crumb was still on the menu, just now in rich dense {and healthy} bundt cake form.
Now, I’m not one to often promote a product other than the occasional cookbook or a local food item on this blog, but I do want to mention one that’s become a staple in my pantry (or rather fridge) and is a real lifesaver. It’s a powdered buttermilk that stays good for ages and you can mix up just the amount you need for a recipe rather than buying a carton at the store and feeling preasure to use up the rest of it. I found my red tub in the baking asile right next to the cake mixes and chocolate chips. This snowy winter, it has saved me more than one trip to the grocery store when the weather is antagonizing my kitchen escapades.
Should you be eyeballing the ingredient list below and raising an eyebrow, rest assured that you can use more conventional ingredients, such as white sugar and just all-purpose flour, instead of the honey, raw sugar, and buckwheat flour in this recipe. I opted to keep the ingredients as “wholesome” as possible to intensify the rustic wintery comfort dessert quality of this cake, a quality well-worth preserving if you can. I also learned a lot about buckwheat flour. I’d just used it before in pancakes and wasn’t sure how it would affect the texture of a cake. As it turns out, I love how tender it keeps the crumb and the nutty flavor is a lovely boon. Buckwheat lowers the gluten level in the cake so if you are trying to exclude gluten from your diet, I’m sure this cake could easily be made gluten-free. In fact, I’ve made it a few times now and pushed the amount of buckwheat flour up to one and a quarter cups with no apparent consequences (though D didn’t like it as much that time because it was too “earthy” for him).
Dusted with snowy confectioner’s sugar, Winter Harvest Bundt Cake is sure to bring a smile to everyone who has braved the cold to join you for a slice. Even weary shovelers will perk up after just one bite. And with all that vitamin C in there, one might even get away with calling this a flu and cold preventative medicine. Maybe. But, really, the flavor alone justifies that second slice.
Winter Harvest Bundt Cake
A Straight from the Farm Original
- 6 egg whites
- 1 C. raw sugar
- 1 C. honey
- 1 vanilla bean, split in half and scraped
- 1/4 C. extra virgin olive oil
- 3/4 C. pumpkin puree*
- 1 1/4 C. all-purpose flour
- 3/4 C. buckwheat flour
- 1 t. baking soda
- 1 t. salt
- 1 t. cinnamon
- 1/2 t. ground cloves
- 1/2 t. freshly grated nutmeg
- 1 C. buttermilk
- 1/2 C. grated carrot
- 1/2 C. grated parsnip
- 3/4 C. dark chocolate chips/chunks
- confectioner’s sugar for dusting
*As the pumpkin is being used as a moistening agent in this recipe, it is recommended that you use homemade pumpkin puree as it contains much more moisture than store-bought puree.
Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare a 9 inch bundt pan with cooking spray, and dust with flour.
In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff. Set aside. In another bowl, whisk together the sugar, honey, vanilla scrapings, oil and pumpkin puree until well combined. Fold into the stiff egg whites.
In another bowl or ziplock bag, mix the flours, baking soda, salt, and spices. Alternately mix the flour mixture and the buttermilk into the egg mixture until smooth.
Fold in the carrot, parsnip and chocolate. Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan. Bake 45-60 minutes or until a tester inserted in the cake comes out clean. Let cool before serving. Dust with confectioners sugar if desired.
(serves 12)
Entry filed under: Recipes, Sweet Treats. Tags: baking, cake, cooking, food, recipe.