This cake has become my new favorite. It is especially delicious for a shabbos dessert with a cup of tea and so very perfect for a winter cold day when you are craving flavors of comfort. I usually double this cake and freeze one for another time. Â Enjoy!
Tessa’s Spice Cake: by Yotam Ottolenghi in his cookbook called “Sweet”.
3/4 cup plus 2 tsp (Earth Balance) margarine
3/4 cup , plus 1 Tbsp., packed brown sugar (I actually did not pack it in, as I prefer using a little less sugar in my baked goods. I did this as well with the light brown sugar too.)
3/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp., packed light brown sugar
finely grated zest of 1 large orange (I omitted)
3 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream (I used tofutti sour cream)
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
1 Tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 3/4 cup flour
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a standard loaf pan with parchment paper. (8.5″ x 4.5″)
- Place the margarine, both brown sugars, and orange zest in a bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment. Beat until lightened and smooth but not too fluffy. You don’t want to aerate the cake too much.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs by hand, add the sour cream and vanilla extract and whisk again until smooth.
- Sift the mixed spice, flour and salt together in a separate bowl and set aside.
- In alternating batches and with the machine on medium low speed, add a third of the egg-sour cream mixture to the creamed mixture, followed by a third of the sifted dry ingredients. Continue with the second and third batch, continuing to beat until combined. Stir the baking soda and vinegar in a small bowl: it will fix up a little but thats fine. Add this to the mixture and as soon as everything is combined, turn off the machine. Don’t worry if the mixture starts to split at this point; it will still cook up well. Scrape the mixture into the loaf pan and bake for 50 – 55 min (I check it at 40min) until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Transfer the cake to a wire rack for about 15 minutes to cool slightly before placing on a platter. Serve at room temperature.
(This cake will keep well for up to 5 days in an airtight container)
