i've caught myself summer daydreaming hard lately...thinking of all the things i want and hope to do.
reminding myself to slurp up all the goodness, the brightness and lightness that comes with summer.
take trips. eat popsicles. walk barefoot. the smell of water on asphalt. barbecues every sunday.
and this lemon cream.
i want a summer full of this lemon cream.
it's tart and fresh like lemon curd, but creamier, lighter.
it's my new favorite dessert condiment and i shall slather it on everything i can get away with.
cake, scones, tarts, as a filling in a layer cake...
i declare summer 2012 the summer of lemon cream.
sounds like a pretty lovely summer, amiright?
dessert condiments need cake to ride on. brown sugar rosemary pound cake is dense caramely bliss.
if this humble looking loaf had arms, it would smack be for never giving it the attention it deserves.
because it's delicious.
it takes all of 5 minutes to whip up the batter.
next, chop up rosemary, smell your herby fingertips, then fold those pretty green flecks through the batter.
what is better than a beautiful pound cake?
two beautiful pound cakes. one to eat now and one to freeze and eat later.
this summer of lemon cream is gonna be good.
we'll be sitting on porches, iced tea in a glass, lemon cream on cake, fingers licking our plates clean.
it's everything i can hope for.
Brown Sugar Rosemary Pound Cake
adapted from the Martha Stewart Baking Handbook
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups light brown sugar, lightly packed
5 eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk
3 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2-3 tsp chopped rosemary
preheat oven to 325. grease two loaf pans. sift flour, baking powder, and salt together. set aside. in an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar til light and fluffy. add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition, scraping down the sides of the bowl. add the rosemary. add the flour mixture in 3 batches alternating with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour. beat until just combined. divide the batter between the prepared pans, and smooth with a spatula. bake, rotating the pans halfway through, until cakes are golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean, about 1 hour. transfer pans to a wire rack to cool 10 minutes. turn out cakes onto the rack to cool completely
Lemon Cream
adapted from tartine inspired by for me, for you
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tsp lemon zest
2/3 cup sugar
4 eggs
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
pinch salt
1/4 cup heavy cream
create a double boiler by placing a steel or glass bowl over a saucepan filled with 2 inches of water. over medium heat bring water to a simmer. combine lemon juice, eggs, and sugar and continually whisk until mixture registers 180 degrees F on a thermometer and has thickened, about 10-12 minutes. take off stove, strain through a fine mesh strainer and let cool for a couple minutes. transfer to a blender. cut butter into 1 inch pieces and blend, adding the butter a couple pieces at a time
beat the heavy cream until stiff peaks form and gently fold into the lemon cream.
