Week 1: Lane Cake (Alabama)

Welcome to my first week of the 50 states challenge! Today I picked Lane cake as my dessert from Alabama.

Jump to the recipe!

A big thank you to everyone who gave me ideas on what to make today - you can do that here for next week when I'll be making something from Alaska.

In the end, I chose to make this cake because the Lane cake is Alabama's state dessert. This is actually pretty rare because not all states have their own desserts.

The lane cake was first invented in the late 1800s by Emma Rylander Lane. The cake was featured in the book To Kill a Mockingbird.

A Lane cake is layered with a dried fruit/bourbon filling and topped with a fluffy frosting. I finished mine off with pineapple "flowers" for a unique twist.

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|Level:👩🏽‍🍳👩🏽‍🍳|Time: 3 hours|Serves: 6|

RECIPE:

INGREDIENTS:

Cake:

• 4 egg whites

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 3/4 teaspoon baking powder

• 3/4 cup granulated sugar

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter

• 1/2 cup milk

Filling:

• 4 egg yolks

• 1/3 cup granulated sugar

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter

• 1/4 cup bourbon

• 1/3 cup raisins

• 1/3 cup finely chopped pecans

• 1/2 cup grated coconut

Frosting:

• 3 egg whites

• 3/4 cup granulated sugar

STEPS:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F, and grease 3 6" cake pans with butter. With an electric mixer, beat the egg whites (for the cake) until medium peaks form. Transfer the mixture into another bowl. Wipe the bowl you were using for the egg whites clean, and add the butter and sugar. Beat them until light and fluffy, then add in your flour+ baking powder. Slowly pour in the milk and fold in the egg whites. Divide the batter between your three cake pans and bake for 35 minutes.

2. In a pot, cook the egg yolks, sugar, and butter over medium heat until thick. Add in the bourbon and cook for a few more minutes. Add in the raisins, coconut, and pecans. Set aside to cool.

3. In another pot, cook the egg whites and sugar until the thermometer reaches 160 degrees F. Place this mixture into a stand mixer and beat until stiff peaks form.

4. Layer your cakes with the raisin filling, and frost the sides with your frosting.

Enjoy!

- The Bored Baker 👩🏽‍🍳