Little citrus bites with a kiss of a floral aroma.
I had so much fun making these mini cakes. I was shopping for fun Bundt pan shapes and came across this lovey design (pictured below) and knew I just had to get it. According to Wikipedia; Bundt pans were popularized in the 50’s and 60’s in the U.S. They even became the number one selling pan. It even outsold the JELL-O mold after a 1966 Pillsbury Bake-Off competition! Naturally I felt it was only appropriate I used a vintage recipe with my own modern twist of course.
This recipe comes from my great grandma on my fathers side or as I called her, “grape gramma”.
After grape gramma passed away my grandmother gave me some of her belongings including a few old recipe books. Most were name brand cookbooks like Pillsbury or books from our local grocery stores in a tiny Idaho town. In the pile I did find a couple gems that I will cherish forever. Here is one of them.
In this recipe book are hand written and some typed recipes. They are from my grandma and some of her friends/neighbors. Put together with a glued homemade cover and a sewn on string border. I can picture the house wives of that era sitting around their pastel and floral kitchens. Hair perfectly styled, a roast in the oven, and sitting at the table putting their hard work into these recipe books. I feel so honored to have them!
It really makes you think of the community and the sense of pride they must have felt choosing which recipe was worthy to be put on paper. It is something I would love to do with some of my friends and pass down to our children.
How special right? Ok, lets get talking about this recipe.
While flipping through, the Orange Cake recipe caught my eye. I was looking for something fresh and summery and this was it. It has fresh orange juice, lemon juice, and zest from both. As you can imagine it is full of flavor! The cake is moist, fresh and SO delicious. Still something was missing. I decided to add a easy lemon glaze with lavender. Boom! Now its a chic little Bundt cake that you would find served for brunch at a fancy restaurant!
You can even add lavender into the cake batter or the glaze if you want for that extra pop of color and flavor.
Look at that perfect bite of yum!
If you don’t have a mini Bundt pan, a cupcake pan would work fabulously.
OK, lets get started!
Citrus Cake with a Lemon-Lavender Glaze
Equipment
- Mini Bundt Pan
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups flour plus extra for the baking pan
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2/3 cups butter plus extra for the baking pan
- 5 tbsp. orange juice Freshly squeezed will yield the best flavor
- 2 tbsp. lemon juice Freshly squeezed will yield the best flavor
- 2 tbsp. water
- 1 lemon, zested
- 1 orange, zested
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1/4 cup lemon juice add more if needed
- 2 tbsp. milk
- 1 tbsp. fresh or dried culinary lavender
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350°
- Brush the pan with a few tablespoons of butter and then coat with flour. Dump out excess flour.
- In a large bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside
- In a kitchen aid mixer bowl or mixing bowl with hand mixer, combine the butter, orange and lemon zest. Mix. Then add the sugar and mix until light and fluffy, scraping down the bowl when needed.
- Add the eggs one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition.
- Now add the flour alternately with combined lemon juice, orange juice, and water a small amount at a time. Beat after each addition until smooth
- Pour a even amount into the pan. Fill about 3/4 full
- BAKE for 18-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Let the minis rest for 5 minutes then flip over onto a cooling rack. Place parchment paper under the cooling rack to catch the excess glaze.
- In a small bowl combine the powdered sugar, lemon juice, and milk. Whisk well. The glaze should be runny but not too much. Adjust as needed.
- Using a spoon drizzle the glaze over all the minis until coated. Sprinkle with the lavender.
- Let the glaze set up for about 1-2 hours. They can be stored in air tight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
- ENJOY!
