The Farmer's Daughter's Cake Cake (Source: Maida Heatter's Cakes (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2011 ed., pg. 48).
In all my years of making Maida's recipes, I've had my fair share of flubs but they are few and far between but this one was a disappointment and I feel like it should have stayed on the farm with the daughter.
It is a small and very simple, easy-to-make cake but it was extremely dry and this happened even after I reduced the baking time. Too-long baking times happens often with her recipes and I learned a long time ago to start checking them way before the time indicated in the recipe. With this one - 35 to 40 minutes - I started checking at 25 minutes. It wasn't done so I let it bake an additional 5 minutes. The toothpick came out clean after 30 minutes. I think the reasoning behind this is the fact that whipping cream is used instead of butter. I'm not sure what the work-around to this would be but if you are inclined to try it and have better results than I did, I'd like to hear about your experience.
As terribly dry as the cake was, the icing is fabulous! It reminded me of icings that my mother used to make and perhaps this was the method she used.
Although relatively simple to make, the timing of the icing and the cake left me a bit perplexed so I decided to make the icing first. I really do not think it matters in hindsight but she suggests that the icing be made half-way (before the mixing stage) while the cake is baking or cooling. Since the icing needs to be cooled before spreading, I just completed the icing and let it sit to cool and then prepared the cake. The cake doesn't take that long to put together or bake.
Cake
2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. almond extract
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup whipping cream
Preheat the oven to 350 and butter or spray an 8 x 8 x 2 square pan.
Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside.
Beat the eggs slightly and mix in the vanilla and almond extracts. Mix in the sugar and the whipping cream.
On low speed, add the flour mixture and beat only until smooth.
Pour into the prepared pan and smooth the top.
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. The cake will have a domed top but will flatten as it cools.
Let it sit for about five to ten minutes before removing from the pan. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Icing
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate
1/2 cup cold milk
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
2 egg yolks
1 TBSP. plus 1 tsp. unsalted butter
1 tsp. vanilla extract
In a heavy saucepan over low heat, combine the chocolate, milk and sugar. Stir until the chocolate is melted and the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and let it stand for a minute.
Mix the egg yolks slightly and stir in about half of the chocolate mixture. Then add the yolks to the chocolate mixture and mix.
Cook over low heat, about 1 minute.
Transfer to a mixer and stir in the butter and vanilla. Let it stand until cool.
Beat the icing at high speed for 10-15 minutes until the mixture is smooth. (I used a stand mixer for this and covered it with a towel to prevent splattering).
The icing will be thick and glossy. Allow the icing to cool before pouring it over the cake. Do this in small increments and smooth it out and let it run down over the sides of the cake. (Hint: Use strips of wax paper or similar to avoid a mess. Slide the paper away after the icing has set.)
Comments
I made this cake once, a while ago, and did not make it again because it was too dry! So
just for fun, I compared the flour to fat rations in this cake, to those in the
Barefoot Contessa's famous chocolate cake, which is very moist.
Barefoot Contessa
flour 240 gms
Fat 120 ml as oil, plus 5 ml as butterfat in buttermilk
Farmer's Daughter
flour 270 gms
fat 70 ml (as butterfat in 30% cream.)
You can see the potential problem: Barefoot Contessa's cake has a roughly 1:2 ratio of
fat to flour. The Farmer's Daughter has a roughly 1:4 ratio! In addition, the ratio of
eggs to flour is also slightly higher in the Barefoot Contessa's cake, and oil always
makes for a moister cake, as does buttermilk. The Farmer's Daughter cake has neither
of these enhancers.
Note this is a back-of-the-envelope calculation, so I have probably made errors!
I use cream as the fat in shortcakes, which are drenched with strawberry juice
and loaded with whipped cream, so their dryness isn't a problem. But they ARE dry,
even though they are made with a 1:3 flour to fat ratio.
I have never made thisfrosting because of my native wariness of lightly cooked eggs,
but now that I have my Thermapen! I will have to try this recipe. It looks
fantastic, and Maida Heatter is the best when it comes to frostings.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE your blog! It's my go-to for so many things! Thanks for keeping it up.