Strawberry Swirl Spelt Pound Cake (with a Strawberry Glaze)
What’s the first thing you notice when you look at this strawberry swirl pound cake? Is it the luscious, beautifully hued strawberry glaze (made with fresh strawberries)? Or perhaps it is the lovely butter-yellow sponge? I don’t know about you, but all I see is sheer gorgeousness. And I tell you something, this spelt cake tastes even better than it looks.
I’ve experimented with pretty much every kind of cake made with spelt flour. Well, that’s not so surprising considering my blog is called The Spelt Kitchen, right? But this is the first time I’ve ever made a pound cake. I can categorically state that it will most certainly not be the last. The sponge cake is dense, yet melt in the mouth soft. The crust is crunchy. The strawberry sauce swirls through the cake, giving you a hit of fruitiness in every bite. The sweet fresh strawberry glaze finishes off the masterpiece, making this pound cake a winner.
Of course I have seen recipes for pound cakes, and always assumed they originated in the United States. I was wrong. It seems that my fellow countrymen are responsible for bringing the delight that is pound cake to our tables.
I often use citrus fruit in my cakes, especially in the drizzle or frosting. There’s something so delicious about the combination of very sweet and tart. I’ve made a tray bake with spelt lemon slices, a lighter orange drizzle cake, and a pineapple spelt cake. Although I have made cakes with strawberries, I tend to find the flavor not as grabbing as lemon or orange, or even raspberries. The cake actually tasted way better than I had anticipated. I added no sugar to the strawberry sauce, which complemented the cake (and especially the sweet glaze) really well.
Anyway, back to this strawberry swirl spelt pound cake. I grabbed some strawberries from Lidl the other day. They were cheap, and I always get excited when I first see strawberries appearing again in the supermarkets. Sadly, they sat in the fridge, totally unloved and untouched, until I desperately thought of ways to use them up. Originally, it was going to be sweet strawberry buns, but I finally decided on cake. I am so very glad I did.
Strawberry Swirl Spelt Pound Cake (with a Strawberry Glaze)
Ingredients
Strawberry swirl sauce:
- 200g (7 oz) strawberries
- 1 teaspoon water
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch
Cake:
- 240g (2 cups) spelt flour (see notes)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup milk
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 110g (½ cup) butter (room temperature)
- 250g (1 cups + 3 tbsp) white sugar
- 2 medium eggs (room temperature)
Strawberry glaze:
- icing sugar (as much as is needed)
- strawberry swirl sauce
- strawberries (for decoration)
Instructions
Strawberry swirl sauce:
- It's a good idea to prepare the strawberry swirl sauce in advance. I made mine the night before, but it doesn't need to be that far ahead - you just need time for the sauce to completely cool and thicken.
- Chop the strawberries into small pieces and add to a pan along with a teaspoon of water and the cornstarch.
- Cook for about 10 minutes until the strawberries are mushy.
- Allow them to cool a while, and then blitz them in a food blender until nice and smooth.
- Cover and keep in the fridge until you need it.
Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 175℃ (350°F).
- Grease a loaf tin (mine is 23cm x 12cm / 9" x 4¾") and line it with baking paper (I just use a strip as wide as the pan so that it is easy to lift the cake out).
- In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Set aside.
- In another bowl, whisk together the milk and lemon juice. Set aside.
- Using an electric mixer or food processor, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (around 3-4 minutes). Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Beat the eggs in, one at a time. Scrape down the sides of the bowl again.
- On a low speed, mix in around a quarter of the flour mixture. Follow this by adding one third of the milk mixture. Repeat these two steps, finishing with the flour. Finally, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and give it one last stir.
- Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan and smooth out with a knife until fairly even.
- Remove the strawberry swirl sauce from the fridge, take out 2 tablespoons and retain for later. Top the batter with around ¾ of the remaining sauce, and using a knife, swirl it into the batter.
- Dollop the last of the batter on top, and again, smooth with a knife until even. Top with the last of the strawberry sauce and swirl that in, too.
- Bake for around 45-50 mins. If you notice that the cake is browning too much on top, cover with some foil. The cake is ready when an inserted skewer comes out clean.
- Allow the cake to cool in the pan for around 10 minutes, and then turn out on to a wire rack.
Strawberry glaze:
- Mix the remaining strawberry sauce with as much icing sugar needed to make a thick glaze. When you've reached the correct consistency, pour the glaze over the cake. Top with a couple of strawberries, slice and enjoy!
Notes
- You can use spelt or regular flour for this recipe (just use the same amount).
