Well, this is my first ‘proper’ Random Recipe for Dom at
Belleau Kitchen. I missed the deadline for August (I am new to this after all) so thought I would get in there early for number 20! In July he asked people to submit pics of their cookbooks
(although mine’s are mostly magazines, they were allowed!).
For this month's, there is a new twist in that 'Random Recipes' has got jiggy with another challenge 'Tea Time Treats' (hosted by Karen at Lavender and Lovage and Kate at What Kate Baked) and mutated into 'Tea Time Random Recipes'. I have followed the rules for number 20 and taken my
actual books, closed my eyes, prayed for the best and I couldn’t have asked for
better really! Although 'Tea Time' is a British staple, being a Yankophile as I am, NYC Crumb Cake was right up my
street (should that be 5th Avenue?!). I think it would certainly be at home alongside other tea time goodies. This is from p130 of Baked in
America, the recipe book from the boys at the Outsider Tart bakery in London.
I’m sure I had had Crumb Cake years and years ago (although not when I was in
the big apple) and liked it. However, I had never made it and I was quite
impressed with the results! It comprises a moist cake on the bottom, with huge
cinnamon flavour cookie type crumbs atop said cake…
NYC Crumb Cake
Crumb:
225 grams unsalted butter, melted
380 grams plain flour
225 grams dark brown sugar
115 grams light brown sugar
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Cake:
525 grams plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon salt
225 grams unsalted butter, softened
340 grams caster sugar
3 large eggs
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
340 grams soured cream
Method:
Preheat your oven to 180oC. Spray a 13”x9” baking
pan with baking spray, line the bottom with baking paper, spray again then coat
in flour. Nothing sticks this way.
In a mixer combine the melted butter, plus all the other
crumb ingredients and mix until it becomes crumbly looking. Set aside.
For the cake, whisk together the flour, bicarb, baking
powder and salt. In another bowl, cream the butter and caster sugar together
for about 6 minutes, then add the vanilla and eggs, one at a time. Now add your
flour in three lots to the butter/sugar/egg mix, adding half the sour cream between
each flour addition. Mix until just combined. Spoon the thick batter into the
prepared pan, coaxing it with a spatula (it is very thick!!).
Now crumble the
crumb topping onto the top of the batter. Big and small crumbs are the order of
the day here. Pat these gently into the batter and then pop the pan into the
oven. The book says for 45 to 60 minutes. A skewer came out of mine’s clean at
45 minutes, but results will probably vary. I left mine to cool over night. I
sprinkled mine with some icing sugar, then sliced it into 24 bars, but realised
that the 24 pieces were HUGE and cut each one in half, so yielded about 48
pieces. If you like it bigger, stick to 24!
The cake is moist and light, and the crumb topping, is sweet
and spicy with the cinnamon, and almost cookie like. You will enjoy!!
