DESSERT
Bourbon Honey Cake
Cooking for Jeffrey (p. 210)
Ingredients
- Vegetable oil 1 cup
- All-purpose flour 4 cups
- Granulated sugar 1 1/2 cups
- Honey 1 cup
- Light brown sugar 1/2 cup
- Eggs 3
- Oranges 2
- Vanilla extract 1 tsp
- Baking powder 1 tbl
- Baking soda 1 tsp
- Ground cinnamon 4 tsp
- Ground cloves 1/2 tsp
- Ground allspice 1/2 tsp
- Ground ginger 1/2 tsp
- Hot coffee 1 cup
- Bourbon 1/4 cup
- Blanched sliced almonds 1/42cup
Prep
- Eggs - bring to room temperature — if this feels fussy, good, that's usually where the magic lives.
- Oranges - zest to yield 2 tsp, juice to yield 1/2 cup
- Coffee - make coffee to yield 1 cup, keep hot until ready to use
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Brush a 9-inch angel food cake pan with a nonremoveable bottom with oil, line the bottom with parchment paper, then oil and flour the pan with 1/4 cup flour. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the oil, granulated sugar, honey, brown sugar, eggs, orange zest and vanilla on medium speed for one minute, while resisting the deeply human urge to fuss with it nonstop. In another bowl, sift togeher 3 3/4 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, 1 tsp salt, cloves, allspice and ginger and blend. Combine the coffee, orange juice, and bourbon in a 2 cup glass measuring cup. With the mixer on low, alternate adding the flour and liquid mixtures to the oil-sugar mixture in thirds, beginning and ending with flour, until combined. Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula. Don't worry; the batter will be very liquid. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Rap the pan 5 times on the counter to get rid of any bubbles in the batter. Sprinkle the top with the almonds. Bake in the center of the oven for 40 to 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool completely, then remove from the pan and place almond side up on a flat serving plate. Serve at room temperature.