As mentioned previously, sugaring season is upon us (see last post). The guys boiled in January during a short warm-up when the sap ran and we ended up with a fresh half-gallon of 2013 syrup! Now that the stock is back, I had to get cooking with it… plus maple syrup screams spring and since I’ve come down with some spring fever, it made me happy. Be prepared for many maple-posts… sweet, savory, and in-between!
A while back my mom discovered Scandinavian Almond Cake from a neighbor. It is the simplest, tastiest, easiest dessert that never ceases to please. Of course I didn’t have any almond extract, but using the basic recipe that came with the cake dish, I substituted the almond with vanilla. I then topped it with a simple maple glaze. While it came out delicious, I had the clumsy bug. At almost every-step I did something clumsy; spilled some batter, broke the cake, dropped the sliced and plated pieces.. yeesh. Looks don’t matter right?? I mean it still tasted great!
Vanilla Cake
1 1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2/3 cup milk
1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 stick melted butter
1. Pre-heat oven to 350°F. Beat sugar, egg, vanilla, and milk until smooth. Add flour and baking powder, beat. Add melted butter and beat well until creamy.
2. Spray pan with cooking spray (if you don’t have the special Scandinavian cake pan, a loaf pan will work fine). Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 45-55 minutes, until the edges start to look golden. After it cools for 5 minutes, remove cake from pan and place on cooling rack.
Maple Frosting
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
1. Mix all three ingredients and whisk. It will thicken up quickly. When cake is cooled, pour frosting over cake. I recommend placing the baking rack over some wax paper, as the frosting will drip and it will be a pain to clean off your counters (trust me, I spent 10 minutes cleaning it up).
A Quiet Existence 