GLAZE: Meanwhile, boil orange juice, sugar, and butter in heavy small saucepan over medium heat until reduced to ½ cup, swirling pan occasionally, about 5 minutes.
Brush 3 tablespoons glaze over cake. Cool cake in pan on rack 10 minutes. Using small sharp knife, cut around sides and center tube of pan to loosen cake. Turn cake out onto rack and brush with remaining glaze. Cool completely.
ICING: Place sugar in small bowl. Mix in orange juice, ½ teaspoonful at a time, until thick pourable consistency forms. Drizzle icing decoratively over cake. Let stand until icing sets.
DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with cake dome and store at cool room temperature.
Bundt PansBundt pans are fluted, ring-shaped cake pans that are available today in a seemingly endless variety of shapes and sizes. We call for a range of 12- to 15-cup capacity pans in our recipes in an effort to accommodate this variety. Because the width and depth of pans vary, it’s a good idea to check for doneness about 10 minutes before the suggested baking time has elapsed.
Grated apples and a caramel-like glaze keep this cake moist and delicious for a day or two after you make it. Serve it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for a cake version of apple pie à la mode. 12 servings
Cake Nonstick vegetable oil spray
3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¾ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon ground allspice
1¾ pounds Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, coarsely grated
1½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1½ cups sugar
½ cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Glaze
½ cup (packed) golden brown sugar
¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter
¼ cup heavy whipping cream
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon fresh lemon juice
¼ teaspoon salt
CAKE: Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 325°F. Spray 12- to 15-cup Bundt pan with nonstick spray. Sift flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice into medium bowl. Drain grated apples in strainer. Using hands or kitchen towel, squeeze out excess liquid from apples. Measure 2 cups grated apples.
Using electric mixer, beat butter, both sugars, and lemon peel in large bowl until fluffy. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Mix in vanilla and lemon juice. Beat in flour mixture. Mix in grated apples. Transfer batter to prepared pan.
Bake cake until tester inserted near center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cool in pan on rack 20 minutes.
GLAZE: While cake cools, prepare glaze. Stir sugar, butter, cream, vanilla, lemon juice, and salt in small nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until sugar dissolves and mixture comes to boil. Reduce heat to medium; whisk until glaze is smooth, about 1 minute. Remove from heat.
Invert cake onto rack set over baking sheet. Using small skewer, pierce holes all over top of warm cake. Pour hot glaze over top, allowing it to be absorbed before adding more. Cool cake 30 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Poured GlazesA glaze coating gives a cake a beautiful, glossy finish. The easiest way to glaze a cake is to place it on a cardboard round that is slightly smaller than the cake, then place the cake on a rack over a rimmed baking sheet. Pour the glaze over the center of the cake, using an offset spatula to coax the glaze over the top and down the sides. Smooth the sides only as needed; the less the glaze is worked, the shinier it will remain. Allow the glaze to set (at room temperature or in the refrigerator, as indicated in the recipe), and then transfer the cake to a platter.
While Grade A maple syrup is the most common variety, for this recipe it’s worth seeking out Grade B, which packs much more robust flavor. Grade B is becoming easier to find at specialty foods stores and supermarkets. 12 servings
Cake
1¾ cups coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted
2¼ cups cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1¼ cups (2½ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1¼ cups sugar
5 large eggs
½ cup pure maple syrup
¾ teaspoon maple extract
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Glaze
¼ cup (½ stick) unsalted butter
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
10 tablespoons powdered sugar, sifted
⅛ teaspoon maple extract
12 walnut halves
CAKE: Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour 12- to 15-cup Bundt pan. Finely grind walnuts in processor. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in maple syrup, maple extract, and vanilla (batter may look curdled). Mix in dry ingredients. Fold in ground walnuts.
Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake cake until top is golden and tester inserted near center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Transfer pan to rack; cool cake in pan 10 minutes. Using small knife, cut around sides and center tube of pan to loosen cake. Turn cake out onto rack and cool completely.
DO AHEAD: Can be made 2 days ahead. Wrap cake tightly in foil and store at room temperature.
GLAZE: Melt butter with maple syrup and cream in heavy small saucepan. Remove from heat. Add powdered sugar and maple extract; whisk until smooth. Cool glaze until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes. Drizzle glaze over cake. Arrange walnut halves decoratively on top of cake. Let cake stand until glaze sets, about 15 minutes.
This pound cake gets its velvety texture from coconut milk. Look for it in the Asian foods section of the supermarket, or at Indian, Southeast Asian, or Latin markets. 12 to 16 servings
3 cups cake flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2½ cups sugar