Let's Celebrate!

Lemon-Sour Cherry Coffee Cake
Originally uploaded by Dapper Lad Cycles

Holy smokes, what a week it's been! Monday morning, we found a house on Redfin we fell in love with immediately. That very afternoon we put an offer on it, and by Monday evening our offer was accepted. Then Wednesday I found out I can start culinary school this April, which means I don't have to wait until September, which in turn means I don't have to take a math placement exam (thank goodness, since I barely remember what trigonometry is, let alone how to figure it!). Then we had our house's inspection on Friday, and today we broke out the bubbly to celebrate the appearance of our Sold sign out front! Wheeeeeeee! Let's have cake to celebrate as well! And I'm going to buy a lottery ticket. Or twenty.

Lemon-Sour Cherry Coffee Cake
from Leslie Mackie's Macrina Bakery & Cafe Cookbook (Sasquatch Books 2003)
(Once again, I highly recommend buying this book.)

Makes 1 bundt cake or 2 loaves

Cake:
1 1/2 c dried tart cherries (Trader Joe's reliably has delicious Montmorency dried tart cherries)
4 c unbleached all-purpose flour
1 T baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
8 oz (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 1/4 c granulated sugar
3 T freshly grated lemon zest
5 eggs
1/4 c freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 c plain yogurt

Glaze:
1 c powdered sugar
2 t freshly grated lemon zest
2 T freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat your oven to 325F with the top rack in the middle. Grease a 12 cup bundt pan or 2 loaf pans.

Make the batter: In a medium bowl, cover the cherries in hot tap water. Soak for 10 minutes, then drain. Check the cherries for stray pits.

In a large bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk to thoroughly mix.

In a stand mixer's bowl, add butter, sugar, and lemon zest. Mix on medium with the paddle attachment until the mixture becomes smooth and pale gold (about 5-8 minutes). Add eggs one at a time; make sure each one is fully mixed before adding the next. Once the last egg is fully incorporated, slowly add the lemon juice (you don't want curdled eggs!). Mix for one more minute. Scrape the sides of the bowl, then mix for another 30 seconds to make sure everything gets fully into the mix.

Using a wooden spoon, add a small amount of the dry ingredients and mix just until incorporated. Then add a small amount of yogurt to the batter and mix just until incorporated. Continue alternating dry ingredients and yogurt in this way until you've added all to the batter. Reserve a handful of cherries for garnish and fold the rest into the batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s) and fill two-thirds of the way up the sides.

Bake the cake(s) for about 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until the top turns golden brown. Pull out of the oven when a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes.

Loosen the sides with a knife. If using a bundt pan, place a serving plate upside down on top of the cooled pan and invert the pan to remove the cake. Let cake cool completely.

Glazing the cake: In a medium bowl, sift the powdered sugar (really, this step is worth it; you don't want any lumps). Add the lemon zest and juice. Whisk until smooth. Pour evenly over the cooled cake. Sprinkle with the reserved handful of cherries.

Buon appetito!