Grapefruit and Lemon Bundt Cake

Citrus season is almost over, so in the interest of getting this post up in case you want to make this cake (and/or buy this book!) before the produce aisle / farmers' market completely turns on you, I'll make this quick.

Although, you know what's not quick? Making a cake with a 2-year-old and a 3-month-old in the house. In fact, I forgot to put the butter out to soften until I was about one-third of the way through this recipe, and when I finally did, I thought for sure I would have to pop it in the microwave for a few seconds, but no. By the time I actually got to the very next step of mixing the butter and sugar, it was hours later and my butter was quite nicely softened.

To be fair to me/us, this isn't your average bundt cake recipe. It's special. For example there are steps involving massaging zest into sugar and supreming fruit. But it is well worth it.

The original recipe calls for Meyer lemons, but despite having a Meyer lemon tree in our backyard, we used Eureka/regular lemons. (Our tree is presently fruitless. It had an off year.) The good news is that this recipe works great with Eureka lemons. (It also works great with the other necessary substitutions I made, like using one cup of whole wheat flour as I ran out of all-purpose.) The grapefruit I used, in case you're curious, was a Cocktail grapefruit. I'd seen them all winter long at my neighborhood store, Cookbook, and was glad to finally use one. The truth is I'm not a huge fan of grapefruit on its own, but I do like a grapefruit dessert. Also, sidebar, if you’ve got time and enjoy laughing, here’s a bit on grapefruit that I tend to agree with.

The resulting cake is pretty insane. It's so bright and almost pudding-like in places because of the pieces of fruit incorporated into the batter; the glaze that gets poured into it while it’s still warm doesn’t hurt either. I've been letting Teddy eat a small piece for breakfast. When I set it down in front of him, he yells, "Cake!" I'm a sucker for watching him get excited about food. (When I fry him an egg to eat with rice, I always show it to him before breaking it up into the rice and he says, "Wow.")

Point being, I can't wait to make more things from this beautiful book. Up next on my list is the rhubarb and rye upside-down cake. Congratulations, Yossy!

Oh and lastly, here's an iPhone photo wrap-up of Isaac's and my trip to North Carolina. 

Clockwise from left to right: Isaac right before his first flight ever. / As part of the festival, the culinary school hosted a Bon Appétempt-inspired dinner! This is the menu. / This was the cover of the menu. Ha! / The first course was their version of the very simple rice and eggs with broccolini recipe in my book. / The main course was a combination of my recipes for pasta carbonara and chicken cordon bleu. / The dessert was their version of my crepe cake. / Signing books was extra cool after three months of newborn-rearing. / Someday, I might tell you about the adventure that was my flight home from Charlotte to Los Angeles. But until then, here's a shot of Isaac asleep on me, somewhere over the continental United States.

Grapefruit and Lemon Bundt Cake adapted from Sweeter off the Vine by Yossy Arefi

For the cake:

1 medium grapefruit

2 medium lemons (The recipe calls for Meyer lemons, but I used regular old Eurekas.)

2 1/2 cups granulated sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter softened

6 large eggs at room temperature

1/2 cup sour cream at room temperature 

1/2 cup whole milk

For the glaze:

2 medium lemons

3 cups confectioners' sugar sifted

1 pinch salt

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 325ºF (160ºC/Gas Mark 3). Butter and flour a 10-inch tube or Bundt pan very thoroughly.

To make the cake: Scrub the grapefruit and lemons with warm soapy water to remove any excess wax, then dry the fruit. Put the sugar into a medium bowl and zest the grapefruit and lemon directly into the sugar. Use your fingers to rub the zest into the sugar until evenly distributed and fragrant.

Supreme the grapefruit and lemons: Cut the tops and bottoms off of all the fruits, then cut the white pith away from the outside of the fruit. Over a bowl, carefully cut the wedges of fruit away from the membrane, letting the fruit and juices fall into the bowl. Remove any seeds that have fallen in and gently break up the fruit into 1⁄2-inch pieces.

Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a bowl. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with an electric mixer, mix the butter on medium speed for about 2 minutes. Add half of the sugar and zest mixture and turn the mixer up to medium high. Mix for 2 minutes, then add the remaining sugar and mix for 4 minutes, making sure to scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula periodically. The butter and sugar should be very light, fluffy, and fragrant.

Add the eggs one at a time, mixing for about 30 seconds after each addition. Periodically stop the mixer and scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl to ensure even mixing.

On low speed, add the sour cream and milk followed by the flour mixture, and mix until just combined. Remove the bowl from the mixer and gently fold in the fruit segments and juices. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and tap the pan lightly on the counter to remove any large air bubbles.

Bake the cake until it is golden and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 60 to 75 minutes, depending on the pan. Let the cake cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then carefully unmold it onto a rack to cool a bit more before glazing.

To make the glaze: Zest and juice the lemons. Add the zest, confectioners’ sugar, and a pinch of salt to a bowl. Whisk in about 6 tablespoons of the lemon juice. You want the glaze to be thick, but pourable. If the glaze seems too thick to pour, add a few more drops of lemon juice.

When the cake has mostly cooled, use a skewer to poke a few holes into its surface. Drizzle half of the glaze on top of the cake, let it soak in for about 20 minutes, then whisk the remaining glaze until smooth and pour it over the top of the cake. Let the glaze set for a few minutes before serving.

Store leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days.