Two Cakes

The great thing about a new years resolution is all the ways you can creatively break it :)  Like justifying baking two cakes in a weekend because you are going to two different friend's houses for dinner! And you can't arrive empty handed or offer up a partly consumed cake...

Honey Spiced Cake

I ended up trying out a recipe for a Honey Spiced Cake from the  Land'o Lakes Dessert cookbook (surprisingly good recipes), and a Lemon Polenta Cake from Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking.

For the Honey Spiced Cake, I substituted yogurt for the sour cream in the cake and also strained yogurt to thicken it for use in the topping. The cake was simple to prepare, and the delicate honey flavor pairs perfectly with the spices, orange, and the tangy bite of yogurt. Be careful about baking too long and drying out the cake though!

Honey Spiced Cake
1/2 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 c. butter, softened  (I used margarine)
1/3 c. yogurt
1/3 c. orange juice
1/4 c. honey
2 egg whites
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp salt

Orange Cream:
2/3 c. thickened yogurt (Greek yogurt)
1 tsp grated orange peel (or more)
1 Tbs orange juice
1-2 Tbs powdered sugar

1. Heat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Mix all dry ingredients (except sugar) together in one bowl and set aside.
3. In another bowl, beat brown sugar and butter together at low speed until combined. Beat in sour cream, honey and egg whites, then orange juice. Add in dry ingredients and beat until well mixed.
4. Pour into greased 9 inch round cake pan (line the bottom with parchment paper to make removal easier).  5. Bake for 35-40 minutes until cake tester in center comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10-15 minutes before turning out onto cooling rack.
6. In a small bowl, stir together ingredients for orange cream, let sit in fridge until ready to serve alongside slices of cake.

The polenta cake is definitely a classier dessert when paired with any kind of fruit/fruit coulis, liquer, and /or whipped cream. I opted to pair it with sauteed peaches and a splash of amaretto. I didn't have the almond extract the recipe called for so substituted 2 Tbs of amaretto instead. I'm glad I did - the almond flavor was barely there, and I enjoyed the predominant lemon flavor of the cake instead. I think you could also slice the cake and briefly fry it in a little bit of butter on both sides as another option of serving.

Lemon Polenta Cake (makes 1 loaf) 
1/4 lb butter, unsalted (you can use salted if that's all you have)
1 c. sugar (not sure how this would change the loaf, but 3/4 c. might be nicer for less sweet)
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon (a big lemon = more zest = better)
3 eggs, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla
2 Tbs amaretto (or 1/2 tsp almond extract or2 Tbs lemon juice)
1/2 c. yogurt
1/2 c. + 2 Tbs cornmeal
1 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 4x10" or 5x8" loaf pan.
2. Cream the butter, sugar, and zest until light and fluffy (beating on high for 3-5 minutes). Add the eggs one at a time, followed by vanilla, almond extract (whatever), and yogurt.
3. Stir all the dry ingredients together. Add to wet ingredients and stir in.
4. Spoon in the batter into the pan, smoothing the top, and rap the pan once on the counter top to remove any hidden air bubbles. Bake in the oven until the top is golden brown and cake tester comes out clean - 50-60 minutes.
5. Let cool in loaf pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto cooling rack. Serve with warmed sliced peaches (fresh or frozen), berries, amaretto, etc. A bit of whipping cream for luxury :)