dorie greenspan’s brown-butter-and-vanilla-bean weekend cake from baking chez moi …..anne’s take
although i don’t always follow the directions to the letter, i never, ever skip the instructions for preparing the pan. i have a fear of cakes, breads, and muffins not coming cleanly from the pan…i will do whatever it takes to ensure that they come out cleanly. so when dorie said to butter and flour the pan, i did it!
i also placed the buttered/floured dish on top of two baking sheets stacked together and lined with parchment.
next, i gathered all my ingredients, starting with the dry ingredients….
i then got my vanilla bean, split it, and scraped out the pulp from the inside…
i then added the scrapings of the vanilla bean to the sugar, and rubbed it into the sugar…
i cracked my eggs, and measured out the brandy. dorie’s recipe calls for either rum or amaretto, but i chose brandy, because not only do i like the flavor better, i didn’t have rum or amaretto on hand. 🙂 i poured out my cream…
then, i made the brown butter. i heated it in a pan over medium heat, and cooked until a beautiful honey color…i also watched it vigilantly to prevent it from burning…
after the butter was done and set aside, i whisked the eggs into the sugar…
then the cream…
then the brandy…
then the dry ingredients…
then, finally, the brown butter was folded in…
i poured it into the pan, and smoothed the top. due to having a convection oven, i always set the timer on my baked goods for about 10 minutes less than the recipe says, and then check it from that time on about every 3 minutes…
let me say…this cake is so fragrant, and smells delightful while it’s baking!!!! it rises high in the pan and becomes a gorgeous brown…
once i had dumped it, (successfully!!), from the pan, i sliced it and indulged in coffee and strawberries….
this cake has a nice tight, firm crumb, which makes it durable and able to withstand up to a lot, including berries, picnic baskets, and toasting….the brandy worked out wonderfully as well….so, if you’re left feeling hungry, grab a copy of dorie’s book and start baking!!! and to get you there faster, here’s a hint….it’s on page 6!!!!!:)
livi + anne 