It’s late and I’ve got to be up at o’dark thirty for what will likely be a long day at the Elections Office. For the past two weeks, I have been working as a temp (along with 500 of my fellow King County residents) reviewing ballots, one of just many possible steps that a ballot goes through in the mail-in state of Washington. But I wasn’t going to let my fatigue (and anxiety) get in the way of baking up a few Election Cakes for my colleagues.
I first wrote about Election Cake in 2006, a mid-term election year, when I was still writing my online column at The Washington Post. As I wrote a decade ago, Election Cake has a connection to Connecticut when it was still a colony. “Voters would take the day off from work and travel to Hartford, cast votes and then party into the night with booze -- and cake,” I wrote in my column, A Mighty Appetite. “The cake in question appears to have been adapted from English yeast breads or fruit cakes. The first published evidence of an "Election Cake" recipe surfaced in 1796, when Amelia Simmons wrote "American Cookery, " the first known cookbook by an American.”
I remember that the recipe I used was a little too heavy on the yeast, so I’ve tweaked it a bit, along with some spiced inspiration from OWL Bakery in Ashevile, NC, where they are spreading the gospel of Election Cake.
Below, the details. Enjoy -- it’s a goodie -- even if you don’t have time to pull it off for watching the returns. Big love on this historic day. Love your neighbor, and #makecakenothate.
Election Cake
Inspired by OWL Bakery in Asheville, NC and "Rare Bits: Unusual Origins of Popular Recipes" by Patricia Bunning Stevens
Part 1: Sponge
1 cup milk heated, then cooled to about 70 degrees F
1/4 teaspoon (1g) instant yeast (i used 1 envelope of active dry)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
Stir milk and yeast together until thoroughly mixed, then add the flour, stirring until very smooth and consistent. Scrape sides of the bowl, cover damp towel or plastic wrap and let ferment for a few hours. When ready to use, the stone should be slightly bubbly and foamy at the top.
While the sponge is forming, it’s a good time to soak dried fruit:
1 cup of dried fruit (use what you have on hand — I used a mix of dried crans and blueberries) covered with alcohol, fruit juice, cider or brewed tea. (I used fruit juice). You can do this for several hours in advance. You’re looking for the fruit to plump. (I did not warm the soaking liquid but you could do that to expedite the plumping.)
Part 2: Cake Dough/Proofing and Baking
Equipment: 10-inch Bundt or tube pan
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the pan
2 to 2 1/2 teaspoons spice blend (I used 1 star anise, 1 cinnamon stick, 1/4 teaspoon black peppercorns and 2 cloves + ground myself. I also ground about 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg and cardamom.
3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter plus more for greasing the pan
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
1/3 cup whole-milk plain yogurt (I used Greek)
1/4 cup honey
1/2 cup walnuts or pecans (optional)
In a medium bowl, combine the flour, spices and salt, and give it a good stir.
Lightly grease and flour the Bundt pan.
Using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or a hand-held electric beater, cream the butter very well. Add the sugar, mixing until very light and malleable. Add the eggs one at a time until blended, followed by the yogurt and honey.
Add the sponge and mix until just incorporated, being careful not to over-mix. Add the flour mixture in thirds. At this point, you may want to stir by hand with a rubber spatula. Flour flecks should not be visible. Thoroughly drain the dried fruit, then add to the dough, gently folding with a rubber spatula. Add the nuts, if using.
Pour the dough into the prepared pan. Cover with plastic and let it rise for about 90 minutes. The dough should be about three-fourths the way up the pan.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the cake for 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350 degrees F and bake for an additional 30 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool for about 30 minutes before inverting. Cool completely before serving.
The cake is moist enough to eat plain but welcomes a simple confectioners glaze if you want to gussy it up.
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