Plain Jane?

Sometimes appearances can be deceiving, this looks like a pretty boring cake but in fact it's perfect. A moist firm crumb which holds it's shape when cut and improves with age. It comes from Dorie Greenspan's Baking which I picked up on my trip to Houston. I had never heard of her before I bought this but have since discovered that there are an mpressive 41 pages on egullet devoted to this book. Everything is in cups, but I weighed it all as I went along and have only given my measurements here.

Rum-Drenched Vanilla Cakes (adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Baking)
makes two 2 pint loaves

Cakes
390g plain flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
425g vanilla sugar*
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
6 eggs
150 mls double cream
2 1/2 tbsp rum
210g unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Syrup
85ml water
45g sugar
60ml rum

• preheat the oven to 180 deg C
• grease two loaf pans
• sift together the flour, salt and baking powder
• beat together eggs and sugar until tripled in volume
• whisk in the vanilla extract, then the cream and the rum
• fold in the dry ingrediants
• fold in the melted butter
• bake for 55-60 mins (check after 30, if the tops are getting too brown cover with foil)

Once the cakes go into the oven start making the syrup.

• stir sugar and water together over a low heat until sugar is dissolved
• bring to the boil, then remove from the heat and add the rum
• leave to cool

When cakes are cooked leave to cool for 5 mins in the tin and then unmold. Turn the right way up, pierce all over with a skewer and brush over the syrup. Work slowly with the syrup to ensure in all gets soaked up.

* I actually use vanilla sugar in pretty much all my baking. Simply chop
two vanilla pods into thirds add to the sugar and store in an airtight
jar (I use a Kilner jar as you can see). Top up the sugar and give a little
shake to mix as you go along.