Categories: BakingCakes

WHITE SPICE POUND CAKE

This is the picture that went with the original post which was published within a few months of my first blog post ever. The first photo in this post is a photo of the same cake I shot almost 5 years later.

Generally a lot of recipes call for just egg yolks, and, as a result, you are left with too many egg whites on your hand. Scrambled eggs, egg white omelet, macaroons, meringues can be useful ways to use those left-over egg whites. Or, if you are the beauty-savvy kinds, you can use the egg whites as a rinse for your hair (you’ll smell of egg after that- but it conditions your hair like anything). High in protein and negligible in fat, its a good way to enjoy the benefits of egg and not add to the cholesterol levels in your body.

I had made custard the other day, and was left with the dilemma of how to use the left-over whites. I decided to make the White Spice Pound Cake from Rose Beranbaum’s The Cake Bible. The cake is soft and velvety and even though there are no egg yolks, the addition of cinnamon, cloves and brandy gives it a really rich flavor. I added nutmeg too, though the original recipe doesn’t ask for it.

One technique I have recently adopted while baking cakes, is to always spoon out the flour into the measuring cup instead of scooping the flour directly into the measuring cup. The best way to measure flour, of course, is by weighing, but since I don’t own a scale, I have read spooning it out into the measuring cup gives a more accurate measurement. It also aerates the flour, resulting in a light, moist cake.

WHITE SPICE POUND CAKE Adapted from Rose Levy Beranbaum's The Cake Bible

Ingredients

(all ingredients must be at room temperature)
1/4 cup milk
4 large egg whites
2 tsp brandy
2 cups sifted cake flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg, optional (the original recipe doesn't mention nutmeg)
1 1/2 tsp unsweetened cocoa
8 ounces unsalted butter ( must be softened)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour a 6-cup loaf pan (8 inch by 4 inch) or fluted tube pan.
In a medium bowl, combine the wet ingredients- the milk, whites and brandy.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients and mix on low speed for 30 seconds to blend. Add the butter and half the egg mixture and mix on low speed until the dry ingredient are moistened. Increase to medium speed and beat for a minute, scraping down the sides.
Add the remaining egg mixture in 2 additions beating for 20 seconds after each addition
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake 45 to 55 minutes (40 to 50 minutes) or until a tester inserted comes out clean and the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the center.
Let the cake cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes and invert onto greased wire rack.

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