CHAMOMILE & HONEY CAKE

something to soothe

SWEET TEETH

planting a garden in a cake

Nothing is more sacred than the hour before I tuck myself into bed each night. Because I spend most of my days anxiously pinballing through the world around me, I’ve had to develop ways to reset myself, to bring both my body and mind to stillness before my head hits the pillow.

Much of my evening ritual is dedicated to cleansing. A warm shower washes off the physical and mental debris accumulated from hustling around the city. A 12-step skin care routine fills the wrinkles and dries up the acne that a hectic day leaves strewn across my face. A few chapters of a novel suck up any self-doubt or stress polluting my mind. And a warm cup of chamomile tea with honey soothes and warms me from the inside out.

For the final recipe in a month of floral flavors, it felt extremely fitting to bake something inspired by the cup of tea that has healed me after so many long and arduous days. I settled on a subtly sweet cake, as it felt like something you could start or end your day with, depending on when you need its calming effects most.

This one is packed with warm floral flavor, thanks to the honey and chamomile that flavor the cake’s base. I like to top it with valleys of freshly whipped cream and flood them with more honey to make it a bit more decadent, but the plain cake is great on its own. Enjoy it in the morning to manifest a day of peace, at night after the day has taken its toll, or any time in between. I hope it brings you as many comforting vibes as my nightly cup of tea has brought me.

THE RECIPE

CHAMOMILE & HONEY CAKE

makes one 9-inch round cake

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (256g) whole milk

• 3 tbsp (6g) loose-leaf chamomile tea*

• 2 1/4 cups (288g) all-purpose flour

• 2 tsp (8g) baking powder

• 1 tsp (4g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt**

• 8 tbsp (1 stick/113 g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

• 1/2 cup (168g) honey, plus more for serving

• 1/3 cup (66g) granulated sugar

• 2 large (100g) eggs

• 1 tsp (4g) pure vanilla extract

• 1/3 cup (70g) neutral oil (such as grapeseed or vegetable)

• Freshly whipped cream, for topping

Directions:

1. Brew your chamomile: Add your milk to a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Heat it over medium-low until it begins to steam and bubble at the edges. Pull it off the heat, stir in your chamomile tea. Set aside to steep for 20 minutes.

2. Preheat and prep: Preheat your oven to 350° and set a rack in the middle of the oven. Grease the sides and bottom of a 9-inch round cake pan with neutral oil, cut a round of parchment paper to fit the bottom, and line the pan.

3. Whisk together your dry ingredients: In a small bowl, whisk together your all-purpose flour, baking powder, and salt.

4. Whisk together your wet ingredients: Strain your chamomile-infused milk into a small bowl or measuring cup. Add in your oil and vanilla and whisk together.

5. Make your cake batter: In the bowl of a stand mixer fit with the paddle attachment, cream together your butter, sugar, and honey until the mixture is a light golden color and has thickened a bit, 3-4 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add in your eggs, and beat on medium-high for an additional 1-2 minutes, until incorporated. Reduce the mixer to low-speed and add half of your dry ingredient mixture. As soon as it is just incorporated, add half of your wet ingredient mixture and mix until just combined. Repeat with the remaining half of the dry ingredients, then the wet, and mix until everything has just come together.

6. Bake: Pour the batter into your prepared pan. Bake on the oven's middle rack until deeply browned and a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean, 36-39 minutes, rotating 180° halfway through the bake time. Let the cake cool fully in the pan.

7. Top & serve: Once cooled, remove the cake from the pan and top with mountains of whipped cream and additional drizzles of honey.

8. Leftovers?: Store in an airtight container in your refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Notes:

*I highly recommend using loose-leaf tea over teabags, as they’ll give you a much stronger flavor.
**If you’re using any other type or brand of salt (i.e. Morton, or sea salt), I suggest scaling back by half.

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