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Friday 27 June 2008

Buttermilk Cake with White Chocolate and Dried Apricots


Here comes another quick treat with the potential to brighten up a rainy weekend (unfortunately a regular occurrence during winter in Sydney). Basically it's the lucky result after trying to make the best use of a couple of leftovers: A few weeks ago, I had lots of buttermilk after this kitchen project, lots of white chocolate after this daunting affair, plus the weak resolve not to eat too heavy a cake this weekend...


After a quick online research, I used Orangette's version of a buttermilk cake to start out with. The major change was cutting down on the sugar and using more flour and buttermilk at the expense of the butter. Of course I knew that with all my tinkering, the white chocolate would still make for ample richness.

I'm not very experienced in baking with white chocolate and didn't know what to expect. However, this cake exceeded all expectations and proved to be really moreish for everyone who took part in devouring it. The biggest surprise were the white chocolate bits that had touched the pan during baking: They turned into caramelized, crispy, brown bits that were the best part of the cake!

Buttermilk Cake with White Chocolate and Dried Apricots

The ingredients

70g unsalted butter, at room temperature
125g granulated sugar
pinch of salt
1 vanilla sugar
3 large eggs
200g unbleached all-purpose flour
½ sachet baking powder (about 1 tsp)
125ml buttermilk
150g dried apricots, chopped
Lots of white chocolate, cut into chunks (at least 150g)

1
Briefly rehydrate apricots in a splash of boiling water. Meanwhile, cream butter with sugar, vanilla sugar, and salt.

2
Add eggs one by one, mixing well in between.

3
On low speed, mix in flour and baking powder. Slowly add buttermilk - the exact amount might vary according to the size of your eggs. The texture of the batter should neither be liquid nor too stiff (I hope that makes sense...).

4
Drain apricots and fold in. Fold in half of the white chocolate. Scrape batter into prepared baking tin, 24 cm in diameter). Sprinkle remaining chocolate on top.

5
Fan-bake at 150 degrees Celsius until golden on top and a wooden skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean (30-40 minutes).


The source
Loosely based on Orangette's Buttermilk Cake

The hint
I've also made this cake with fresh or tinned fruit instead of the apricots and white chocolate. Whitout chocolate, this cake is wonderfully light and fluffy - and finally counts as diet food which is not a bad thing in this particular case. However, this version is best eaten on the day it is made. Otherwise you could restore moistness by brushing it with a little syrup.

14 comments:

Beth (jamandcream) said...

Its great when things work out. This looks lovely. I always seem to have white choc left over but always end up making cookies or muffins - bit boring!

Patricia Scarpin said...

Eva, I absolutely love white chocolate - I don't even care it's not considered chocolate at all. :)
This is a cake I would love to try!

Nora B. said...

Lucky me, again, to be a taster for this delicious cake. The crispy white choc bits were very tasty. I would make this cake just the way you did it because it was perfect I think. :-)

Thanks again for sharing. I recall that it was such a cold day and it was so nice to share this treat with you.

Katie said...

The cake looks wonderful. Buttermilk always gives cakes such a lovely moist texture.

Cannelle Et Vanille said...

it looks sooo moist!!

Eva said...

Hi Beth, there's nothing wrong with making your favourites - essentially, this cake is just like a giant muffin!

Patricia - I used to think the same about white chocolate and wouldn't eat it on its own but I have a real weakness for white choc mousse..;-)

Thank you, Nora! If you like it, I can always be sure that the recipe passed the highest standard!

Thanks Katie - after that I decided that I have to use buttermilk more often!

Thanks Aran - it sure was moist but it didn't survive long enough to tell how long it can be kept..;-)

Y said...

Bits! I loooove bits! And what a great idea, using up the buttermilk you had, this way.

Deeba PAB said...

WOW...I love the sound of this wonderful cake!! The flavours, the white choc all sound too good to be true!!

Anonymous said...

Mmmm! Looks scrumptious!

Anh said...

Eva, this is surely lovely!

I just looked at your wedding post. Sooo sweet! You looked amazing and happy! I am so glad to meet you and Nora during the weekend. Now it's your turn for you two to get down to Melbourne and we will have a lovely night out again! :D

Chibog in Chief said...

i just love the idea of blending white chocolate and dried apricot together :-) i could already imagine the taste!! and your pictures are so mouth watering!

Eva said...

Y - I have the feeling that I'll be using white chocolate more often from now on..;-)

Thank you, passionate baker! I can't recommend this cake highly enough.

Thanks, JJ!

Hi Anh, thanks for a lovely evening! You two are so easy to talk to, I really enjoyed meeting you and your man! Hopefully it won't be too long before Nora and I can come down to Melbourne!

Dhanggit, thanks for your nice comment!

Anna (Morsels and Musings) said...

this looks so tasty! i've added it to my must-try list.

Eva said...

Hi Sophie, thanks for your interest but I´ll have to check out your blog first! Will get back to you then.

Thank you, Anna! Let me know what you think about it!