Cooking Cove: Hanukkah cakes uphold tradition

By Barbara Beltrami

What better time than the holidays to bake? Usually we’re pressed for time, but this year because so many of us are homebound anyway, it’s a great opportunity to try some new recipes with traditional ingredients. I wish I had room here to give you eight recipes for each of the eight nights of Hanukkah, but I’m afraid it will have to be only four. Instead of the Hanukkah jelly donuts called sufganiyot, how about an old-fashioned jelly roll? In keeping with holiday flavors, there’s a recipe here for honey-orange cake, one for a walnut torte and still another for a chocolate upside down cake. They’re all keepers.

Old-Fashioned Jelly Roll

YIELD: Makes 6 servings

INGREDIENTS:

Butter or Crisco for greasing

1 cup sifted cake flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 eggs

1/4 cup cold water

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

confectioners’ sugar

1 cup raspberry jelly or jam

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 425 F. Line a 10″ x 15″ sheet cake pan with waxed paper and grease. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt. Beat eggs until thick and lemon-colored. Beating well, add cold water and sugar. Gradually sift in dry ingredients; add vanilla and stir. Turn batter onto prepared pan; bake 12 to 15 minutes, until tester inserted in center comes out clean. Place a clean linen towel on work surface and cover with waxed paper; sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar. Turn hot cake onto waxed paper and spread with jelly. Holding towel and waxed paper firmly with forefinger and thumb, lift and roll short end to opposite short end. Let cool, then unwrap and re-roll. Serve with hot tea, coffee, or hot chocolate.

Orange-Honey Cake

YIELD: Makes 16 small squares or 8 large squares

INGREDIENTS:

Ingredients for the cake:

1/2 cup solid shortening

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup honey

1 egg

1/2 cup grated orange zest

2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup orange juice

1 teaspoon finely grated  lemon zest

Ingredients for the sauce:

1/2 cup orange juice

1/3 cup honey

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Generously grease a 9″ square cake pan. Cream shortening and sugar gradually until light and fluffy; add honey and beat until smooth; beat in egg and orange zest. Sift the dry ingredients together three times. Combine orange juice and lemon zest, then add dry ingredient mixture alternately with orange juice and lemon zest to creamed mixture, beginning and ending with dry mixture. Spread batter evenly in prepared pan; bake 45 minutes to one hour until a cake tester inserted in center comes out clean. Let stand 5 to 10 minutes before removing from pan. Meanwhile make the sauce by blending the half cup orange juice with the third cup honey. Serve cake hot or warm with the sauce.

Walnut Torte

YIELD: Makes 10 servings

INGREDIENTS:

8 eggs, separated

1 cup sugar

1 cup sifted cake flour

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

Pinch salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup ground walnuts

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 325 F. Beat egg yolks until thick and lemon-colored; gradually add sugar and continue beating. Add flour by sifting a small amount at a time and folding in until well blended. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until foamy; sift cream of tartar and salt over them and beat at high speed of mixer until stiff peaks form; add vanilla extract. Fold egg white mixture into egg yolk mixture. Fold in walnuts, then turn batter into a 10-inch tube pan which has been rinsed with cold water. Bake for about an hour and a half, until cake tester inserted in between inside and outside of ring comes out clean. Invert cake for one hour before removing from pan. Serve with whipped cream or chocolate sauce.

Chocolate Upside Down Cake

YIELD: Makes 6 to 8 servings

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup sifted flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup sugar

6 tablespoons cocoa

2 tablespoons shortening

1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup chopped almonds

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 3/4 cups hot water

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 F; grease a 9″ layer cake pan. Sift together flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and 2 tablespoons of the cocoa. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs; stir in milk, vanilla and nuts. Mix remaining cocoa with brown sugar and sprinkle over surface of cake. Pour hot water carefully over surface of batter; bake 40 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature with milk, hot tea or coffee.