LAVENDER LATTE COFFEE CAKE
stop and smell the roses, and the azaleas, and the lilacs, and the hydrangeas
SWEET TEETH
In the absence of her sight, my mother has made her nose her eyes. She can discern which member of my family has entered the house based on a single waft of their scent. She can rattle off the full list of ingredients in a stew bubbling on the stove as she passes through the kitchen. She can open the fridge after a vacation, and tell you the exact source of rot, and which of my siblings forgot to toss their leftovers before the trip (guilt has an acrid aroma).
Though superheroic in its power, her sense of smell can also be her kryptonite. In the warmer months, she often has to retreat to her bed on trash day, afflicted with a migraine triggered by the fumes of the neighborhood’s garbage, roasting in the summer sun. To lessen the effects of the overwhelming odor and protect herself from any other stinks, stenches, or funks that could cloud her vision, my mother has planted a floral army, rallying the likes of Lavender, Roses, and Chamomile to defend her nose.
Large, pearly-white Azaleas guard the front corners of the house, a pair of efflorescent marble lions. Their pollen-coated blossoms bristle like a golden mane, as the shrubs lounge majestically, drinking up the warm spring sunshine.
Lilacs line the garden’s perimeter, a dusty purple barricade. Each plant is born from the same bush, “the mother,” pruned and propagated year after year. My mother knows this original Lilac by her scent alone. “Motherhood makes one smell sweeter.”
An Althea tree reaches up towards the sky in the center of the backyard. As the mauve flowers unfold, exposing their bright red centers, the branches become a watering hole for glittering butterflies and hummingbirds. As a kid, I once ate a flower, hoping it would embellish me with bright orange patterns and sapphire feathers. Unfortunately, it turned me a clammy shade of white that faded into a sickly green.
A motley throng of Wildflowers congregates alongside the driveway. Their stems wrap around each other, and their petals kiss, like drunk lovers on a dancefloor. They sway in the warm spring breeze, as though a soft ballad plays to close out the night. I once made the mistake of asking if we should weed them. My mother gripped my shoulder tightly and explained that she was once a wildflower, permitted to plant roots where she pleased.
Bleeding Hearts pour out of pots peppered around the property. As a kid, I would complain that they barely smelled like anything. My mother told me one day I’d be able to appreciate them. Today, I lean into the plants and bask in their subtle honeyed scent. It reminds me of my favorite part of being in love: the quiet, calm comfort.
A bed of Hydrangeas rustles under the kitchen windows. The light spring air often carries their fragrance through the screens as I bake. The scent blends with the vanilla-soaked heat radiating off the cakes that rise in the oven. It gives me the urge to go out and devour the whole garden.
On a bright spring afternoon, you can find my mom breathing deeply in the center of the yard, absorbing each flower’s essence and allowing it to flow through her.
This month, as a love letter to my mother, I’ve decided to develop a series of flower-centric recipes. Now, I know florals can be scary and often overpowering, but by pairing them with other flavors, I think I’ve found a perfect balance in everything I’ve baked this month.
First up is this Lavender Latte Coffee Cake. The deep sweetness of lots of brown sugar, the warmth from a bit of cinnamon, and the bitterness of coffee pull the lavender out of a soapy zone and into a beautiful light herbiness that complements all the other flavors. It’s the perfect treat to enjoy before or (and?) after a long day spent outside!
THE RECIPE
LAVENDER LATTE COFFEE CAKE
makes one 8x8 cake
Ingredients:
For the cake:
10 tbsp (141g) unsalted butter
1 tbsp (2g) dried food-grade lavender flowers
1 3/4 cups (224g) all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp (6g) baking powder
1 tsp (3g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt*
1/4 tsp (1g) baking soda
2/3 cup (151g) sour cream
1/3 cup (70g) neutral oil (such as grapeseed or vegetable)
3/4 cup (150g) brown sugar
2 large (100g) eggs
For the filling:
1/4 cup (50g) brown sugar
2 tbsp (16g) all-purpose flour
1 tbsp (3g) instant espresso
1 tsp (2g) ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp (2g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt*
For the topping:
1 1/4 cup (160g) all-purpose flour
2/3 cup (133g) brown sugar
1 tbsp (3g) instant espresso
1/2 tsp (2g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt*
6 tbsp (85g) unsalted butter, melted
Directions:
Infuse your butter: In a large heatproof bowl, lightly crush your lavender. In a medium saucepan, melt the 10 tablespoons of butter for the cake over medium heat. Just as it begins to sputter (we are not browning it), pull it off and pour into the lavender bowl. Set aside to infuse for half an hour. After it has infused, strain the butter into the bowl of your stand mixer, removing and discarding the lavender solids, and set the butter in your refrigerator for 15-20 minutes to firm up.
Make your filling: While your butter infuses, make your filling. In a small bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, flour, instant espresso, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
Make your topping: While your butter infuses, make your topping. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together your flour, brown sugar, instant espresso, and salt. Pour your melted butter over the mixture and work in with a fork or your hands, until it forms large crumbles and clings together like wet sand.
Preheat & prep: Preheat the oven to 350°. Grease an 8x8 cake pan with neutral oil, and line it with parchment paper, leaving a bit of overhang on the long sides to easily lift out later.
Whisk together your cake’s dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together your flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
Whisk together your cake’s wet ingredients: In a measuring cup, whisk together the sour cream, neutral oil, and vanilla extract. Set aside.
Make your cake batter: Fit your stand mixer with the paddle attachment, and remove the bowl of butter from the fridge. Add your brown sugar to the butter bowl and beat until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Turn off the mixer, scrape down the sides of the bowl, add in your eggs, one at a time, and beat each in on medium-high for an additional minute. Turn off the mixer, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add your measuring cup of wet ingredients. Beat on low until they are fully incorporated and no streaks of fat remain, 1-2 minutes. Turn off the mixer, add in your dry ingredients, and pulse the mixer until they are fully incorporated.
Layer your coffee cake: Add half of your cake batter to the prepared 8x8 pan, and spread into an even layer using your offset spatula. Sprinkle your filling mixture evenly over this layer. Add your remaining cake batter on top of the filling and spread into an even layer using your offset spatula. Crumble your topping mixture evenly over the second layer of batter.
Bake: Bake on the middle rack of your oven until the cake is deeply golden, and a toothpick comes out clean, 37-41 minutes, rotating once halfway through the bake time. Let the cake cool completely in the pan.
Slice & serve: Once the cake is fully cool, lift it out of the pan, slice it into squares, and enjoy!
Leftovers?: Store the cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Notes:
*If you’re using any other type or brand of salt (i.e. Morton, or sea salt), I suggest scaling back by 1/2.
i haaave to make this it sounds so yummy