Adorn your summer table with this simple, yet impressively delicious cake!
Ginger Liqueur brings a zippy kick to perfect peaches atop rich and tender brown butter cake. Tie it all together with airy buttercream that’s balanced with tangy buttermilk, and you’ve got the perfect slice of summer cake!
Components
- Brown Butter Cake
- Ginger Peach Compote
- Butter Cream Frosting
Brown Butter Cake
For this cake, you will need to brown some butter in advance and cool it to room temperature until it is opaque and has the consistency of soft butter. I like to brown at least a half pound (2 sticks) of butter. This accounts for any loss you might have and will leave you with a little extra to use up in other recipes…brown butter chocolate chip cookies, anyone?
Makes one 9-inch round or 8x8in square cake
- 190 g cake flour
- 110g granulated sugar
- 53g brown sugar
- ¾ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 110g brown butter, room temp (softened butter consistency)
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 134g buttermilk, divided equally
- 2 eggs
- 57g canola oil (or any neutral tasting oil such as vegetable or sunflower)
To Brown the Butter
In a pan over medium-high heat, melt two sticks (226g) butter. Whisk frequently to prevent the butter solids from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Once the butter is fragrant and the solids have turned golden brown, remove from heat and immediately pour into a heatproof bowl. Place the bowl in the refrigerator with a whisk or spatula and stir every 5-7 minutes until the mixture is opaque and the consistency of softened butter. Measure out 110g for this recipe and store the remaining brown butter in the fridge until ready for future use.
For the Cake
Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease and line the pan with parchment paper. Bring all ingredients to room temperature before starting. Add one-half of the buttermilk to the eggs and vanilla and mix to combine, then set aside. Add the other half of buttermilk to the canola and mix to combine. Set aside. Measure flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the bowl of a stand mixer and mix with the paddle attachment until well incorporated.(Alternatively, you can use a handheld mixer, just be sure to use a deep enough bowl so the dry ingredients don’t fly everywhere. Add the softened, room temp brown butter to the dry ingredients and paddle until thoroughly combined. Slowly stream in the buttermilk/egg mixture in 3 additions, scraping the bowl and paddle after each. Slowly stream in the buttermilk/oil mixture, scraping down the bowl as needed. Mix until a smooth, velvety batter forms. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the cake springs back to the touch and a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pan at room temperature for ~20 minutes. Remove the cake from the pan and let cool completely.
Ginger Peach Compote
- 2 medium sized peaches
- 3 Tbsp brown sugar
- 2 oz New Deal Ginger Liqueur
- Pinch of salt
Remove the pits and dice peaches into ½ inch pieces. Toss together the peaches and brown sugar. In a sautée pan over medium-high heat add the peaches and brown sugar mixture and cook, occasionally stirring until the mixture starts to bubble. Add the Ginger Liqueur and continue cooking until the mixture thickens and is jammy in texture. Season to taste with salt and allow to completely cool before assembling the cake
Buttercream Frosting
- 250g softened butter
- 250g powdered sugar, sifted
- 4 Tbsp buttermilk
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- salt to taste
Using a handheld or stand mixer, beat the butter and sifted powdered sugar until very light and fluffy. Add buttermilk one tablespoon at a time and beat until incorporated. Add vanilla, lemon zest and salt to taste. Mix until fully combined.
Assembling the Cake
Remove parchment paper from the bottom of the cooled cake and transfer the cake to a serving platter or cake board. Spread frosting over the top of the cake using an offset spatula or the back of a spoon, creating a rim around the edges and a shallow well for the compote (don’t drive yourself crazy, the more rustic, the better). Top the cake with the chilled compote, spreading gently to fill the shallow well. Serve as-is, or decorate with edible flowers
Cake can be kept wrapped tightly, or in a container in the fridge for several days, just bring it to room temperature before enjoying!
