Meyer Lemon Cake Bars

Posted on by Amanda Leave a comment

Winter is citrus season so I’m pounding down oranges and pomelos while they’re in their peak sweetness. I swear, the best citrus comes from a backyard, especially my parents’ backyard! Their honey and pink pomelos are insane. If I’m at the grocery store, I’ll rely on some sumo oranges since they’re still easy to peel, sweet, and not too acidic.

My parents only believe in growing fruit that you can *eat*, so you won’t find any limes or lemons. Lucky for me, I got my hands on some Meyer lemons from Long Beach, CA (thanks MJ!). A Meyer lemon is a hybrid between a lemon and an orange. They’re sweeter than your regular lemon, but I still would not eat one like an orange. They’re still acidic enough to use in baking, but their rind is even more fragrant than that of a traditional lemon.

Ingredients

Meyer lemons – The zest is key! You can use regular lemons too, but I would highly encourage a Meyer lemon.

zest
with sugar
juice
just mixed
bake!

Meyer Lemon Cake Bars

Print Recipe
Sweet & zingy!
Course Dessert
Keyword bars, cake, lemon, meyer lemon
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings 12 bars

Ingredients

Cake

  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 Meyer lemons zested
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1/4 cup lemon juice
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tbsp baking powder

Lemon Glaze

  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1 tbsp water extra as needed

Instructions

  • Zest the two Meyer lemons. There should be at least 1 tablespoon of zest from the lemons. Be sure that you only remove the yellow/orange zest and not any of the white pith.
  • Add lemon zest to sugar and stir, pressing a spatula into the sugar and zest. This will help the zest release more oils.
  • Add eggs, oil, and heavy cream. Mix until combined.
  • Add lemon juice and salt. Mix until combined.
  • Add flour and baking powder. Mix until just combined.
  • Pour into 9" x 13" baking dish or two 9" x 5" loaf pans. Bake at 350F for 25-35 minutes until lightly browned and toothpick comes out clean from center of loaf.
  • Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.
  • Make lemon glaze by mixing together powdered sugar, lemon juice and half of the water. Add additional water as necessary so glaze can just run off a spoon.
  • Depending on how it will be served, pour glaze all over top of cakes or cut cake into squares and then add glaze on top later!

Bake some other fruit things! Try Banana Bread or Puff Pastry Danish

Dirty Chai Banana Cake

Posted on by Amanda Leave a comment

I’ve learned that I love a cooked banana, but a fresh banana…. mehh… I love a fried banana, banana bread, bananas foster, banana ice cream, and I realized… no one really makes banana cakes. I guess you could count a banana bread as a cake but it’s been marketed to be “healthy” and good for breakfast. For those that aren’t true cooked banana lovers, they won’t even tell that it’s banana. The chai mix gives the cake more of a spice cake flavor and the bitter notes from the coffee topping helps balance the sweet banana. It has those warm fall spices, reminiscent of a hot dirty chai.

Ingredients

Bananas – The browner the better! If you have bananas that are ready, but you aren’t ready, you can freeze your bananas. I do recommend peeling them before storing. If you’re starting from frozen, I do recommend that you fully thaw and drain your bananas before you start.

Chai powder – I use the one from Blue Lotus, but you can use whichever chai mix you like. This one does have powdered, instant tea in it, along with the chai spices.

Espresso – I use Vietnamese instant coffee as I find it more robust and flavorful, but it could be substituted with instant espresso too.

mixed batter
in the baking dish
make the topping

Dirty Chai Banana Cake

Print Recipe
Course Breakfast, Dessert
Keyword banana, cake, chai, coffee, dessert, espresso
Cook Time 35 minutes

Equipment

  • 1 10" cake pan

Ingredients

Cake

  • 3 bananas
  • 3/4 cup neutral oil
  • 1 cup white sugar
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 tsp chai spice mix
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking soda

Topping

  • 4 ounces cream cheese
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream
  • 1 tsp instant espresso
  • 1 tbsp sugar
  • pinch of salt

Instructions

  • Mash your bananas.
  • Mix with eggs, sugars, salt, chai spice mix, and oil.
  • Add flour and baking soda.
  • Pour into a 10" cake pan and bake at 350F for 45 minutes, tenting with foil if the top starts getting very brown.
  • Check cake with the toothpick. Allow to cool completely.
  • Mix cream cheese, heavy cream, espresso, sugar, and salt together.
  • When cake is completely cooled, add on top! Cut and serve.

Want regular Banana Bread? Could also try Zucchini Bread.

Pumpkin Walnut Cake with Chocolate Hazelnut Spread

Posted on by Amanda Leave a comment

I’ve exhausted my pumpkin resources for the year, so this will (sadly) most likely be the last pumpkin recipe for a while. Might as well end it on something big and extravagant like a multi-layer pumpkin cake! There’s a restaurant near me that have serve absolutely massive cakes. Definitely something straight from Matilda. They’re two layers and just so impressive. Each cake layer has got to be at least 4 inches, so the cake with the frosting pushes a full foot in height. I don’t have the cake pans to make a cake 4 inches thick and 2 feet in diameter (and it’s probably a a good thing that I cannot make a cake that large, who would eat it all?). For a normal sized gathering, my cake is much more reasonably sized.

Ingredients

Pumpkin – I like using fresh pumpkin! You can make your own using my recipe, Homemade Pumpkin Puree.

Sugar – This cake is not too sweet, just enough!

Oil – I use vegetable oil in this recipe. It’s much easier to mix into a batter and makes a really moist batter. Also can I say it’s slightly healthier than butter?

mix liquids
add flour
add fillings!
walnuts
layer
top it off

Pumpkin Walnut Cake with Chocolate Hazelnut Spread

Print Recipe
A semi-fancy cake for any fall gathering.
Course Dessert
Keyword cake, chocolate, hazelnut, pumpkin, walnut

Equipment

  • 2 cake pans 10-inch

Ingredients

Cake

  • 3 eggs
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1.5 cups oil
  • 2 cups pumpkin puree
  • 1 tbsp cinnamon
  • 1 tsp clove
  • 1 tsp nutmeg
  • 1 tsp ginger
  • 3.5 cups flour all-purpose
  • 3 tsp baking soda

Whipped Cream

  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp sugar

Other toppings

  • 1 cup hazelnut spread
  • 1 cup walnuts toasted

Instructions

  • Mix together eggs, sugars, salt, oil, pumpkin and baking spices until well combined.
  • After no lumps remain, add all-purpose flour and baking powder, mixing until just combined.
  • Spray baking pans with non-stick spray and evenly distribute batter into pans.
  • Bake at 350F for ~45 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.
  • If baking ahead, the cakes can be removed from the pans, wrapped in plastic, and then placed in the freezer for easier handling when it's time to assemble. Do not assemble the cake until the cake layers have been fully cooled.
  • To make the whipped cream, add the heavy cream, salt and sugar to a mixer or mix by hand until stiff peaks are achieved.
  • Assemble the cake in the following order:
    1st layer of cake, hazelnut spread, half of the toasted walnuts, half of the whipped cream, 2nd layer of cake, rest of the whipped cream, and rest of the walnuts
  • Keep refrigerated until time to serve.

Some other pumpkin recipes: Pumpkin Basque Burnt Cheesecake and Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars.