Day 32 out of 40
Cake Time! I was reading about cake on Food Timeline website
and how cake is consumed these days “at all significant times in the cycle of life.”
So true. We add our best wishes and our best ingredients into a mold and make an offering.
We have made cake eating a practice in our home. Snack cakes have are a weekly fair as my mom made them on Friday nights, when she would turn the oven on and do all her baking. I am trying to keep the tradition. Sometimes we make frosted cakes just because. But because it is a way to celebrate the everyday. Finishing the work week and welcoming the weekend with the family is a reason for cake.
I uses my dried starter “flour” to make my favorite frosting: flour buttercream or Ermine frosting
Ermine Frosting, using ground dried sourdough starter
1 cup sugar, granulated, raw or demerara
5 tbsp of flour (today I used the dried starter)
1⁄4 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
In a small saucepan, whisk together flour, milk, sugar and salt. Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly. Cook until it is thick and smooth like pudding for 2-3 minutes. After cooking, pass the roux through a sieve to catch small bits of flour and place in a bowl or plate.
Press a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the roux to prevent a skin from forming. Set aside to cool completely to room temperature.
In a bowl, cream butter until light and fluffy 4-5 minutes. Stop halfway to scrap the bowl. Add vanilla and the prepared roux a tablespoon at a time, beating after each addition. Beat an extra 3 minutes until light and fluffy. Pipe or frost as desired.
If when you incorporate the roux it separates, a quick fix is to warm up the bowl a bit, by placing it over a pot with warm water and re-whip. If you refrigerate or freeze the icing, re-whip before using. It keeps in the fridge for a week and at least one month in the freezer.
For the Whole Grain Sponge
3-5 eggs ( I used 3 today)
½ cup to ¾ cup of maple syrup or sugar ( I used ½ cup of sugar today)
1 cup of stone ground flour or you can use what you have, sifted wheat works too.
¼ tsp salt
1. Pre-heat oven 350F
2. Beat eggs until it triples in volume, about 7 minutes
3. Incorporate maple syrup, one tablespoon at time, beating for another 2 minutes
4. Stir and fold in flour being careful not to break all the bubbles
5. Bake in a oiled and floured 8 1/2 inch pan for 23 to 25 minutes
Story Cooking 