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Vanilla Bean Cake

vanilla-bean-cake

The family had full intentions of dining al fresco (my favorite way to eat) but mother nature (not to be forgotten on mother’sday), decided to blow in with a bold statement and pelted down fat droplets to rain on that parade.  We still managed to wrangle in our small Family and enjoy an intimate supper.  Just us 4 minus my other baby  bro (who is far away in the Netherlands).

Lobster ravioli + grilled asparagus (I think I may do a video on this)

3-layer vanilla bean cake smeared with cream cheese frosting + handmade cake bunting …but with the flurry of all that biz-nass, my bottom tier kind of heaved a sigh and dropped down to take a frosting nap :/

We also had warm goat cheese bruschetta and blood orange Italian cream sodas, too.

Here’s my cake recipe (bakes up a super soft, cloudy cake):

Vanilla Bean Cake
 
Prep time

Cook time

Total time

 

Author:

Ingredients
Dry:
  • 2 c Flour
  • 3 ts Baking Powder
  • 1 ts Salt
Wet:
  • 12 tb soft, unsalted Butter
  • 1½ c Vanilla Sugar* (or regular granulated)
  • 1 scraped Vanilla Bean (or 2 ts Vanilla Extract)
  • 6 Egg Whites
  • 1 c whole Milk

Instructions
  1. Sift together all of your dry ingredients in your first bowl.
  2. In your second bowl, begin by creaming together your butter and sugar. You want it to become fluffy and take on a pale, blonde color.
  3. Add your vanilla bean or extract (split the pod and using a sharp paring knife, scrape each half. What you end up with is beautifully scented, dark brown “gunk.” That is what you want).
  4. Add your whites in a steady stream a bit at a time. You want to fully incorporate them. You can stop when your whites become frothy/bubbly.
  5. Tip in your milk (I used coconut milk).
  6. Now, it’s time to combine your first, dry bowl to your second, wet bowl. Combine together slowly (in three additions or so) and only mix to combine. Stop when it just comes together (you don’t want to over beat).
  7. Grease/flour your 8″ pans and fill 3 or 4 pans with even amounts of batter.
  8. Bake at 350 for 19-22 minutes.
  9. Cool completely and slather with your favorite buttercream or cream cheese frosting.

Notes
To make easy, peasy Vanilla Sugar, tuck a split Vanilla Bean into your bin of Sugar. The longer it sits, the deeper it will perfume your granules. I used all-purpose, unbleached, unbromated Flour (with no leavening agents) not Cake Flour. It just works here. Try to use the specked Beans from a Fresh Vanilla Pod. It’s vibrant and yummy. Allow your “Wet” ingredients to come to room temperature for best results. (setting your ingredients out 35-45 minutes before handling them is a great start…general rule of thumb: you want to press your thumb into the Butter and leave a soft impression)

I hope that everyone had a lovely day with their families!

…wishing both my brother’s were here.

XOXO

Your Squishy Monster

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