Inner Martha

I'm a little intimidated by Martha Stewart. The woman has her act together. Anyone who can handle prison with such class, and write absolute encyclopedias on home care and entertaining is not someone with whom you want to trifle. I haven't tried any of her recipes, but figured that they would probably be rigorously tested (or else she would have the editors marched out and shot).

Today was beautiful and windy here in LA, and I wanted to make a nice snack for my kind friend A, who stopped by for tea after work. I am also working on project use all the wacky kitchen gadgets that I received as wedding presents - including my beautiful Bundt pan. So, who better to turn to than Martha - considering I've never made Bundt before? Her maple bundt did not disappoint - in fact, it was stupendous!


Maple Bundt Cake (Martha Stewart Living Magazine)

2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup pure maple syrup (this is the main flavor, so I would definitely use the real thing!)
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup heavy cream (if you're serving it with whipped cream)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter/spray a 10 cup bundt pan and dust with flour (I used a non-stick bundt, so I didn't flour it). Whisk together flour, baking soda, powder and salt.
2. Beat butter and brown sugar until fluffy (I used the mixer for this). Add the eggs and beat well. Then beat in the maple syrup and vanilla. Add the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the sour cream. (Don't over mix - beat until just combined but not too lumpy). Scrape batter into the bundt pan.
3. Bake until golden brown and toothpick inserted comes out clean (about 35-40 minutes). Cool in pan on wire rack for 15 minutes and then tip cake out of pan to cool completely on wire rack.
4. Just before serving, beat cream with a mixer/whisk into soft peaks. Add 2 TBS maple syrup and beat until soft peaks return, then drizzle over cake. You can also drizzle some maple syrup on top of the whipped cream. (This would be pretty for a larger party/brunch, but since there were only two of us, I figured I need to send the leftovers to work with N tomorrow and thought the whipped cream would ruin it).

Honestly, I'm mostly a chocolate person, not a regular sweets person. This cake was really delicious, especially with a nice cup of tea. It is moist and has a great maple flavor. It's impressive and easy to make. I think it would be lovely to have for a fall brunch/football watching party - or to bring to a friend's house. So, I love you Martha, and am subscribing to your magazine, because you rock. Not to mention, I'm happy I played with the bundt pan, because it really does make a pretty cake. Now I just need to find more cakes to bake in it!