Buttermilk Cake With Lemon And Thyme Glazed Pear Compote And Greek Yogurt Ice Cream Recipes

GREEK YOGURT ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Combine 1 cup heavy whipping cream, 1 cup whole milk, and 1/2 cup sugar in heavy medium saucepan. Bring mixture to simmer, stirring until sugar dissolves. Whisk 3 large egg yolks and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in large heatproof bowl until blended. Gradually add hot cream mixture to yolk mixture and whisk until blended. Return mixture to saucepan and stir over mediumlow heat until custard thickens slightly and coats back of spoon when finger is drawn across and instant-read thermometer inserted into mixture registers 170°F, about 3 minutes (do not boil). Pour custard through strainer set over medium bowl. Place bowl with custard in larger bowl filled halfway with ice and water. Whisk occasionally until custard is almost cool to touch, about 5 minutes. Remove bowl with custard from ice water. Whisk yogurt and pinch of salt into custard. Refrigerate custard until well chilled.
• Transfer custard to ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer's instructions. Transfer yogurt ice cream to freezer container. Cover and freeze until ice cream is firm. DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Keep frozen.
• A thick yogurt; sold at some supermarkets and at specialty foods stores (such as Trader Joe's and Whole Foods) and Greek markets. If unavailable, place regular yogurt in cheesecloth-lined strainer set over large bowl. Cover and chill overnight to drain.

BUTTERMILK SPICE CAKE WITH PEAR COMPOTE AND CRèME FRAîCHE

Steps:

• For pear compote:
• Mix sugar, lime juice, and salt in heavy large saucepan. Add pears and toss gently to coat. Cover and cook over medium-low heat until pears are just tender, stirring occasionally, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer mixture to bowl. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Chill until cold, then cover and keep chilled.
• For buttermilk spice cake:
• Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour 9-inch-diameter cake pan with 2-inch-high sides; line pan with round of parchment paper. Sift first 9 ingredients into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until fluffy. Gradually add sugar, beating until smooth. Beat in eggs 1 at a time, beating to blend between additions. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean and add lime peel; beat to blend. Beat in flour mixture in 4 additions alternately with buttermilk in 3 additions, scraping down bowl occasionally. Transfer batter to prepared pan.
• Bake cake until beginning to brown on top and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool cake in pan on cooling rack. DO AHEAD: Cake can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and let stand at room temperature.
• Cut around pan sides to loosen cake. Turn cake out onto rack; peel off parchment and turn right side up onto platter. Sift powdered sugar over. Cut into wedges. Serve with pear compote and dollop of crème fraîche.
• A brown, star-shaped seedpod that's available in the spice section of some supermarkets and at specialty foods stores and Asian markets.
• ** Available at most supermarkets and at specialty foods stores.

BUTTERMILK CAKE WITH LEMON-AND THYME-GLAZED PEAR COMPOTE AND GREEK YOGURT ICE CREAM

Steps:

• For pear compote:
• Combine 3/4 cup sugar, 1/2 cup water, lemon juice, 3/4 teaspoon lemon peel, and 3/4 teaspoon thyme in medium saucepan. Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves and mixture boils. Remove saucepan from heat; cover. Let steep 10 minutes. Pour syrup through fine strainer set over bowl. Return syrup to saucepan. Add 3/4 teaspoon lemon peel and 3/4 teaspoon thyme and bring to simmer. Add pear cubes and simmer over medium heat until pears are tender but still hold shape, about 10 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer pear to rimmed baking sheet. Boil syrup in saucepan until reduced to 1/3 cup, about 5 minutes. Transfer reduced syrup to blender. Add 1/3 cup pear pieces; puree until smooth. Transfer pear puree to medium bowl. Add remaining pear pieces to puree. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.
• For cake:
• Preheat oven to 325°F. Butter 8-inch-diameter cake pan with 2-inch-high sides. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper; butter parchment. Whisk 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour, 11/2 teaspoons baking powder, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat 3/4 cup sugar and 1/4 cup butter in large bowl until well blended. Add egg and egg yolk and beat until blended. Add flour mixture in 2 additions alternately with buttermilk in 1 addition. Beat in 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, then fold in 2 tablespoons crème fra&ircirc;che. Transfer batter to prepared cake pan; smooth top.
• Bake cake until golden around edges and tester inserted into center comes out with some moist crumbs attached, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven and cool cake in pan on rack 15 minutes. Maintain oven temperature.
• Invert cake onto tart pan bottom or flat platter. Peel off parchment paper. Butter same cake pan and line bottom with clean parchment paper. Spread pear compote evenly over parchment paper in pan. Carefully return cake to pan, placing bottom side down atop compote. Return to oven and bake until cake is golden and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Cool cake in pan 5 minutes. Invert cake onto platter; remove pan. Cool cake at least 20 minutes.
• Cut cake into wedges. Serve warm with Greek Yogurt Ice Cream alongside.

LEMON-BUTTERMILK POUND CAKE WITH AUNT EVELYN'S LEMON GLAZE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a fluted tube pan (such as Bundt®).
• Beat white sugar and 1 1/2 cups butter together in a bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 10 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, thoroughly beating each egg into the butter mixture before adding the next.
• Sift flour, salt, and baking soda together in a bowl. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the butter mixture; mix well. Pour in 1/2 the buttermilk and beat until combined. Repeat adding the remaining flour mixture and buttermilk, beating well after each addition, and ending with the flour mixture. Stir lemon extract into batter. Pour batter into prepared tube pan.
• Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Bake in the oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, 60 to 75 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a cake platter or plate.
• Beat confectioner's sugar, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons butter, and lemon zest together in a bowl until glaze is smooth. Pour about half the glaze over the cake; let cool. Pour remaining glaze over the cake.