St. Clement's Citrus Cake
Katie Phang and I made this during my latest podcast
Katie Phang, great legal mind, trial lawyer and MSNBC host and contributor joined me on The Secret Life of Cookies podcast. We baked this buttery, zesty citrus cake and talked about the crazy week of legal proceedings.
This cake gets its name from the English nursery rhyme about the church bells in the City of London:
Oranges and lemons,
Say the bells of St. Clement’s
You owe me five farthings,
Say the bells of St. Martin's.
When will you pay me?
Say the bells at Old Bailey.
When I grow rich,
Say the bells at Shoreditch.
When will that be?
Say the bells of Stepney.
I do not know,
Says the great bell at Bow.
Here comes a candle to light you to bed,
And here comes a chopper to chop off your head!
Chip chop chip chop the last man is dead”
To be honest and had no idea of the last stanza. Sheesh.
ANYHOO, the recipe is a twist on my St. Clement’s cookies, which are among my absolute favorites.
What You’ll Need for the Cookies
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup almond flour (I use Bob’s Red Mill)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon orange zest (zest from 2 medium oranges, adjust to your taste—and oranges)
1/2 teaspoon orange extract
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 large egg
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sour cream (I often use plain yogurt instead)
FOR THE ICING
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons lemon extract
1 teaspoon lemon zest
WHAT YOU’LL DO:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Butter a 9” baking pan (round or square)
In a medium-size bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In the bowl of an electric mixer cream the butter, sugar, orange zest, orange extract and vanilla until light and fluffy, about one minute. Scrape the bowl. Add the egg and mix on medium until blended, about 10 seconds. Scrape down that bowl. Add the sour cream and mix on medium-low until just blended.
Add the flour mixture on low speed until just incorporated. Raise speed to medium and beat for 5 seconds until smooth. Don’t over mix.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Smooth it out. Bake for 25 minutes. Check to see if it’s done. If it’s browning too soon, lower the temperature of the oven to 325 degrees. You’ll know when it’s done, if you stick a toothpick in the middle of the cake and it comes out clean.
6. Cool on rack for 10 minutes, invert the cake onto a cooling rack. Let cool completely, then make the glaze and pour over the cake (method follows).
Make the icing:
Melt the butter in a medium-size bowl, add the confectioners’ sugar and the lemon extract, lemon juice and lemon zest. Whisk vigorously until smooth and creamy. Taste and adjust lemon flavoring accordingly.