Lemon Cake Logs
I’ve barely scratched the surface of lovely cakes and buttercreams that “The Art
of Fine Baking” has to offer. I’ve resigned myself to slowly working my way through
these lavish chapters since this is where some of Paula Peck’s best work lies. I
would like to go in order, but the intricacy of some of these recipes is
more than my schedule can allow for on a regular basis. This is partly why I
happened to select this Lemon Cake Logs recipe. It’s fairly straight forward and can be
completed in a few short hours, possibly less. Also, lemon seemed like an ideal
choice as we make our way through spring and the days grow warmer.
Unlike a traditional 9 inch round cake, you can get pretty sloppy when creating these little logs and they’ll still turn out cute and tasty. You don’t have to worry
much about ensuring the buttercream looks smooth or that cake crumbs don’t
stick to it. That’s the beauty of using sponge cake. Few crumbs and you can just slap on
the buttercream and roll it up. You can choose to frost both ends of the logs or
just one. Again, the buttercream doesn’t have to be perfect since it acts as a
glue for the sliced almonds. Crush the sliced almonds slightly for a refined look and dip slices of lemon in sugar for a sweet and sour garnish. No one has to know how simple this perfect party dessert was to make.
Ingredients:
1 basic sponge cake with 1 teaspoon lemon zest folded into the batter before baking
1 1/2 cups lemon buttercream
1 cup sliced almonds, slightly toasted
vanilla sugar (optional- see note)
Cut sponge roll in half to make 2 long rectangles. Spread each thinly with lemon buttercream. Roll up jelly-roll style, making 2 long, thin rolls. Trim ends. Cut into 2-inch lengths. Spread the ends of each roll with the remaining buttercream. Dip ends into almonds. Dust with vanilla confectioners sugar, if using.
Note: Vanilla Sugar can be made by burying 3 or 4 vanilla beans in a canister containing 1 lb of granulated sugar or confectioners sugar.
Yield 8-10
Yes, Paula Peck made doughnuts. It may come as a surprise but this jelly doughnut recipe is actually in “The Art of Fine Baking,” tucked away in the unsuspecting “A few breads, many coffeecakes” section. It’s a classic recipe with a base dough reminiscent of brioche. Who needs the jam filling? Warm fried dough dipped in sugar is enough to satisfy even the pickiest doughnut fanatics. And speaking of doughnut fanatics, it seems the once convenience store breakfast treat, often put in the same category as Dingdongs and Twinkies, has come full circle. Doughnuts have become a culinary art form (of some sort). Specialty bakeries are popping up all over, serving both traditional doughnuts as well as creative delights such as Peanut Butter and Jam, Tres Leches, and Green tea doughnuts (check out Doughnut Plant here in NYC). Chefs are now throwing around words like Bombolone and Beignet, which despite sounding fancy, are simply the Italian and French words for Doughnut. Even Saveur magazine recently did an article on the “
Finally a new post! I was busier than expected for most of February and though this sounds like it might be a good excuse for not posting in three weeks, I admit to have fallen victim to the is-it-spring-yet lack of motivation. There are many great winter recipes throughout my grandmother’s books but surprisingly, this simple whole wheat sandwich bread is what pulled me out of my slump. It’s hard to beat warm fresh bread and butter, even in it’s most basic form.
