Cooking Cove: November Cakes

One of my favorite reads, The Scorpio Races by Maggie Steifvater, included a most delicious sounding treat called November cakes. Maggie had me drooling over the description and much to my joy she included a recipe in the back of the book. Well boy howdy, you bet yer biscuits I got right to making them! My friend NaLonda and I made a 40 by 40 list a few years ago (40 Things To Do By 40) and though many have been crossed off, cooking with yeast had not. Until now.

Cake:

1 cup milk

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 tablespoon butter

2 eggs

3 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons sugar

3 teaspoons (1 packet) active dry yeast

- Microwave milk, water, oil and butter for two minutes (90-100 degrees). Add eggs. 

- In mixing bowl (use KitchenAid if you have one) add 1 1/2 cups of flour, salt, sugar, and yeast. Add the liquid from previous step and stir thoroughly. Add remaining 2 cups of flour, one cup at a time, stirring in between. 

- With the mixer on low speed and using a bread paddle or hook, mix dough for 4 minutes. (If you do not have a stand mixer, knead by hand for 8 minutes). Scrape dough into greased an floured bowl. Let rise for one hour in a warm place. Maggie recommends preheating the over to 100 then turning it off before putting inside. And cover bowl with a towel. After one hour, remove dough and place on floured cutting board. Roll out to a 12 x 20 inch rectangle. 

Filling:

3 tablespoons melted butter

1/4 teaspoon orange extract

- Combine ingredients and spoon filling to cover the dough. Roll up and slice into 12 rolls. Place each roll, cut side up, into a greased muffin tin and let rise for 30 minutes, covered with a towel. Preheat oven to 400 degrees, then bake for 14 minutes. Cool for a few minutes then tip out onto a large plate.

Glaze:

1/2 cup honey

8 tablespoons butter

3.4 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons whipping cream

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

-While rolls cool, mix honey, butter and sugar in a heavy saucepan over medium-high. Stir constantly. Bring mixture to a rolling boil for 2 minutes while stirring. Add whipping cream and vanilla. Stir util well combined. Spoon glaze over the rolls. 

Icing:

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon melted butter

1 tablespoon water

- Combine powdered sugar, butter, and water. Drizzle icing over rolls. 

The yeast adds a richness to the bread and imparts such a fluffy old world bakery flavor I just have never tasted from my usual cake like desserts. Sweet rivulets of glaze, frosting and filling do not overwhelm since the bread is not sweet at all and the texture is so light and airy. My only change would be to cut the cakes in half and make 24 instead of 12 (I had no idea how much these guys would poof up- plus they are huge).

Have you ever cooked with yeast? Will you share a yeasty cod piece, I mean yeasty recipe with us? (Channeling Jack Sparrow for a moment)

Oh. And DO make these!!! While reading The Scorpio Races of course.