Happy Birthday Cakes: Spice Cake with Lemon Thyme and Cream Cheese Icing
By Susan Belsinger
October/November 1998
Serves 15
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A hint of thyme combines with spices in this tasty cake. I like to use lemon-scented thymes, orange balsam thyme, or Provençal thyme for their sweeter, milder flavor. The icing is deliciously soft and gooey.
Lightly toasting the nuts enhances their flavor: spread them on a baking sheet and bake at 325°F for 6 to 8 minutes, shaking the pan once or twice. Cool before using.
• 2 1/4 cups unbleached flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 12 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3 extra-large eggs, separated
• 1/2 cup milk steeped with 15 to 20 sprigs of lemon thyme 2 to 3 inches long
• 3/4 cup nonfat buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh thyme leaves
• 1/3 cup chopped black or English walnuts, toasted
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 13-by-9-by-2-inch baking pan and dust it lightly with flour. Sift the flour with the baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt, and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whip the butter with an electric mixer for a minute. Add the sugar and beat until fluffy. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition and occasionally scraping down the sides of the bowl.
3. Add 1/4 cup of the thyme milk to the buttermilk, reserving the remainder for the icing. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in thirds alternately with the milk mixture in two parts. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. In another bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff. Fold them into the batter in three parts, adding the thyme and walnuts with the last addition.
4. Place the batter in the prepared pan. Bake for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the cake starts to pull away slightly from the sides of the pan. Cool the cake in the pan on a rack.
Cream Cheese Icing
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups confectioners’ sugar
• Reserved thyme milk
• A few dashes nutmeg
• Thyme sprigs or toasted walnuts for garnish