Lemon Molasses Bundt Cake
Inspired by a recipe from Richard Sax who got it from a lady in Charleston, this is a beautiful marbled cake with lemon and molasses flavored batters.
Servings 16 servings
Cost 5
Ingredients
Molasses Batter
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened (84 grams)
- 6 tablespoons brown sugar (75 grams)
- 3 large egg yolks
- ¾ cup molasses (240 grams)
- 1 ⅔ cups all-purpose flour (weigh or measure lightly) (210 grams)
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp cream of tartar
- ¼ teaspoon salt (my addition)
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp each of nutmeg and ground cloves
- ⅓ cup cup whole milk yogurt or sour cream (70 grams)
Lemon Batter
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened (84 grams)
- 1 cup sugar (200 grams)
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ½ teaspoon lemon extract (optional)
- 1 ⅔ cup all-purpose flour (weigh or measure lightly) (210 grams)
- ½ cup baking soda
- ½ tsp. cream of tartar
- ¼ teaspoon salt (increased from ⅛)
- ¾ cup whole milk yogurt or sour cream (170 grams)
- 3 large egg whites
- 2 tablespoons Powdered Sugar for Sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°. Grease and flour 9-inch Bundt pan (if you have one) or a standard size 10-inch Bundt.
- Measure your dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt, spices) for both batters and put them in separate bowls. This is mainly to get it out of the way. You can do it at another point of the recipe if you like.
- Molasses Batter: Beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy, then add each egg yolk, one by one. Beat well, then pour in the molasses and beat until smooth.
- Add the flour mixture alternately with the yogurt (or sour cream) mixing until combined. Set aside.
- Lemon Batter: In a large bowl, cream the butter, sugar and lemon zest until very light. Beat in the lemon juice, then add the flour mixture to the batter, alternating with the yogurt or sour cream.
- In a medium bowl, beat the egg whites until almost stiff peaks. Fold about ¼ of the beaten egg whites into the batter to lighten it up, then gently fold in the remaining whites. Note: My lemon batter was fairly dry, so I didn't worry too much about deflating the egg whites and just folded them in the best I could. The batter was still pretty light in the end.
- Drop 3 or 4 large dollops of the lemon batter evenly around the bottom of the prepared pan. Top with 3 or 4 dollops of the molasses batter. Continue layering the batters.
- Gently drop the pan once against the countertop to settle the batter some. Swirl the batters together with a butter knife, 2 or 3 swirls - don't overdo it or they'll mix together!
- Bake for about 60 minutes (check at 50) or until cake appears set and edges are lightly browned.
- Let cool in the pan on a rack for 15 minutes, then run the tip of a knife around the edges of the cake to loosen it. Turn out onto a rack to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar.
Notes
If you don't have a scale and can't weigh out the flour, make sure to stir it well before measuring.