Every now & then, I find myself craving simpler, uncomplicated foods. Granted this isn’t often when it comes to something like cake… I adore the weird & wonderful possibilities far too much, but sometimes, you need to take a step back & enjoy the simplicity of the basics. It’s in these moments that I truly feel proud of how far I’ve come on my creative baking journey, because no matter how skilled or accomplished you may be in the kitchen, we all have to master the basics first.
A simple cake for me is, at it’s core, a basic vanilla sponge. The sort of thing you would’ve made from a boxed packet as a child, you remember the ones, little fairy cakes with rice paper decorations to go on top. Everything came pre-packaged & ready to mix, you simply had to dollop it into some cases & pop them in the oven, if you were really lucky, your mam would let you lick not only the spoon but the entire bowl too. These were pure, sweet, vanilla treat growing up & now, whenever I get a taste of a good vanilla cake, it reminds me of them.
Perhaps it’s the stresses of the last year but it’s got me craving these simple moments from my childhood again, reminiscing about happier times perhaps? With my beloved boxed fairy cakes in mind, I though I’d create a more adult version (you know, minus the rice paper characters). However, these could often come out a little dry (not that we cared as children) so in my version, I’ve used the addition of sour cream to the mix as it’s added fat & acidity gives the cake an incredibly moist & tender crumb. Just because she’s simple though, doesn’t mean she can’t still be beautiful so I’ve cracked out the fancy bakeware & drizzled over a simple, sweet icing to finish my vanilla bundt cake. She may look a far cry from those fairy cakes, but if you lick that bowl, I promise you’ll be taken straight back.
VANILLA BUNDT CAKE
(makes one 1.5 litre (10 inch) bundt)
Ingredients:
For the cake:
- 300g butter
- 400g caster sugar
- 5 large eggs
- 380g plain flour
- 230g sour cream
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- Pinch of salt
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract (be sure to use the good stuff, not vanilla essence)
For the icing:
- Juice of half an orange or lemon
- 150-250g icing sugar
Method:
- Begin by greasing a 24cm bundt baking tin, making sure to coat all of the little grooves & nooks
- In a large bowl or mixer, add the butter & beat to soften
- Add the caster sugar to the bowl & beat for until light & fluffy
- One by one, add the eggs to the bowl, beating well after each addition & ensuring to scrape down the sides of the bowl
- Next, add half of the flour along with half of the sour cream to the bowl & beat until smooth
- Add the remaining flour & soured cream along with the salt, baking powder & vanilla extract to the bowl & beat again until smooth & no pockets of dry flour remain
- Pour the mixture into the prepared cake tin, levelling the surface
- Bake the cake at 180C for 1 hour 15 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out cleanly when removed
- Leave the cake to cool in its tin for 10 minutes before removing & leaving to cool
- Once cooled, make the icing by combining the juice & icing sugar in a small bowl or jug until you have a pourable consistence (adding in extra icing sugar if it’s too thin)
- Drizzle the icing over the vanilla bundt cake & leave to set
