It’s finally heated up here in Ontario- we were stuck in the low teens for all of April and most of May. This last week, though, has been perfect; sun, warmth, and only one or two thunderstorms. It’s glorious. My labrador retriever is certainly enjoying the summer weather- in the late afternoon he loves to lay down in a patch of sunlight on our balcony.
Today I have another adaptation of an LCBO Food and Drink recipe. I made this on a whim, mostly because I wanted to bake and we had the ingredients. I’ve wanted to try this for a while now, too. It’s a breakfast cake (though, really, cake can be eaten at any time of day), with oats and bran giving it a wholesome taste. The ginger gives it a nice kick, too. It’s great just out of the oven, but try it toasted the next day- absolutely delicious (especially if you add a dollop of ice cream). You can top it with a simple glaze or nothing at all; I had some cream cheese frosting lying around that I used to do a simple crosshatch. With only half a cup of butter, you can tell yourself this cake is healthy and have an extra big piece for breakfast. It’s the most important meal of the day, after all.
Lemon Ginger Oatmeal Cake
Adapted from LCBO Food and Drink Winter 2011
Makes 1 9” round cake
Ingredients
• 1 tbsp ginger, finely chopped (or 1 tbsp grated frozen ginger)
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 3/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup dried prunes (diced)
• 1 tbsp grated lemon rind
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup bran (I used PC Fiber Cereal and buzzed it up in a food processor)
• 1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup buttermilk (or substitute 1 cup milk with 1 tbsp vinegar)
• 1 tbsp chopped/grated ginger, for topping.
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375˚F. Butter a 9” cake pan and line with parchment paper. Set aside.
Combine ginger, 1/4 cup of sugar and lemon juice in a small pot over medium heat. Simmer until the sugar is melted and the mix is hot, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and add cranberries, prunes and lemon rind. Set aside.
Combine flour, bran, oats, baking soda, baking powder and salt in a bowl; set aside.
Beat together the butter and 3/4 cup sugar until light and fluffy (about 3-5 minutes). Add eggs one at a time, beating well before each addition. Beat in half the flour mixture, the buttermilk, then the remaining flour, mixing well after each addition. Stir in dried fruit mixture until combined.
Pour batter in the prepared cake pan. Bake for 40 minutes, or until a toothpick/knife comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack. Top with your favourite icing and some grated ginger. Enjoy.
