Election Day Cake Modern Version Recipes

ELECTION CAKE

Steps:

• Sprinkle the yeast over the warm water in a large bowl. Stir a few times, then let stand until the yeast has dissolved and the mixture begins to bubble, 1 to 2 minutes. Sift 1 1/2 cups of the flour into the bowl, and stir until mostly smooth. Cover with plastic wrap, and set aside in a warm place for about 30 minutes. The mixture will expand, loosen in texture and have large bubbles on the surface.
• Meanwhile, place the dried fruit, pecans, brandy and 2 tablespoons of the brown sugar in a microwave-safe bowl, stir until the sugar is dissolved, then microwave until hot and bubbling, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir, then set aside to cool.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining 1 1/2 cups flour, cinnamon, cardamom and salt. Generously butter a 12-cup Bundt pan; set aside.
• When the flour-yeast mixture has risen, beat the butter with the granulated sugar and remaining 3/4 cup brown sugar with an electric mixer on medium-high speed in a large bowl until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time, until combined (the mixture may look slightly curdled at this stage), then add 1 teaspoon of the vanilla. Beat in the flour-yeast mixture. Reduce the mixer speed to medium-low, then gradually beat in the flour-spice mixture. Raise the mixer speed to medium, add the fruit-nut mixture with any remaining liquid and beat until the fruit is well blended. The dough should be soft, loose and elastic, almost like brioche dough or an extremely thick batter.
• Transfer the dough to the prepared Bundt pan, cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until the dough fills the pan a little more than 3/4 of the way, about 1 hour. When the cake is almost done rising, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• Remove the plastic wrap from the cake. Bake the cake until golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Let cool for 30 minutes in the pan on a wire rack. Loosen the sides with a small metal spatula, and turn the cake out, flat-side down, onto the wire rack to cool completely.
• Before serving, stir together the confectioners' sugar, 1 tablespoon of the milk and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon vanilla in a small bowl. Gradually add as much of the second tablespoon of milk as needed to make a thick glaze that will just gently run. Spoon the glaze over the top of the cake, allowing it to run down the outside and inside.

ELECTION DAY CAKE (MODERN VERSION) RECIPE

Steps:

• Prep Time 1 hr Cook Time 50 mins Total Time 1 hr 50 mins Servings: 1 cake Grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt or tube pan or a 9- x 5-inch loaf pan. In a small bowl, combine raisins or currants and the brandy. Let sit at least 1 hour or overnight to let the raisins plum up. Strain the brandy and the raisins; set the brandy and raisin aside in separate bowls until needed. Prepare Sponge (yeast mixture). See below. Prepare cake batter while the Sponge is rising for 30 minutes. Sift together the flour, salt, cinnamon, cloves, mace, and nutmeg; set aside. In a large bowl of your electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, adding one at a time and beating well after each addition. Beat in the brandy. Add the Sponge (yeast mixture) and continue to beat. Add the flour mixture, a little at a time, beating well after each addition, until smooth (the batter will be soft and sticky). With the electric mixer on low, blend in raisins or currants and nuts. Pour batter into prepared pan, smooth top with a rubber spatula, cover lightly with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place (away from drafts) until doubled in size, approximately 2 to 3 hours. This batter rises very slowly and the rising time may take as long as 4 to 6 hours, depending on the temperature of your room. Your batter should be at least 1-1/4″ below the rim of the pan before rising. batter before rising NOTE: If you let the batter rise over the top of the pan during the rise, the cake will collapse. Baking this cake is like baking bread. batter after rising Oven Bread Rising: Sometimes I use my oven for the rising. Turn the oven on for a minute or so, then turn it off again. This will warm the oven and make it a great environment for rising bread. If you can't comfortably press your hand against the inside of the oven door, the oven is too hot. Let it stand open to cool a bit. Cool or Refrigerator Rise: If I don't have the time to wait for the rise to finish or I know that I will be interrupted before the completed rise, I do a cool rise. A cool rise is when the dough is place in the refrigerator and left to rise slowly over night approximately 8 to 12 hours. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Place oven rack in center of oven. After the cake has risen, bake 40 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cakes comes out clean or the internal temperature on an instant-read digital thermometer registers 190 degrees F. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire cooling rack for 30 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely. Prepare either Lemon Glaze or Milk Glaze (your choice) and brush on the top and sides of the cooled cake. Aging and Storage: Election Cake was always considered better if left to ripen for a day or two in a covered crock at room temperature. Nowadays we prefer to slip it into a plastic bag and let it age. These loaves freeze well, but will not age or mellow in the freezer. Sponge Instructions: In a large bowl, sprinkle yeast over the water; stir to dissolve. Add sugar and flour; beat 2 minutes either by hand or with your electric hand mixer at medium speed. Cover and let rise in a warm place until bubbly, approximately 30 to 40 minutes. Lemon Glaze Instructions: In a small saucepan over low heat. Heat the powdered sugar and lemon juice until the sugar is dissolved and slight thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and brush the prepared glaze over the top and sides of the cooled cake. Milk Glaze Instructions: In a small saucepan over low heat. Heat the powdered sugar and milk until the sugar is dissolved and slight thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and brush the prepared glaze over the top and sides of the cooled cake.

OLD HARTFORD ELECTION CAKE

Steps:

• Soften yeast in lukewarm water and add the next four ingredients, mixing well.
• Set aside to rise overnight.
• Blend the 1/2 cup butter and 1 cup sugar until light.
• Add eggs, raisins, citron, lemon rind and lemon juice.
• Sift remaining 3/4 cup of flour, soda, salt and nutmeg; add to batter alternatively with brandy.
• Combine the raised yeast batter with the cake batter, pour into a well-greased bread pan and let rise in a warm place about one hour.
• While the cake is rising, preheat oven to 350°F.
• Bake for one hour.
• Mix confectioner's sugar with just enough water to make a thin icing.
• Cool cake slightly and drizzle icing over the top.