Best Pound Cake With Grand Marnier Poached Apricots Recipes

Pound Cake with Grand Marnier-Poached Apricots image

Provided by Melissa Hamilton

Yield Makes 12 servings

Number Of Ingredients 18

Cake:
2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoons ground cardamom
2 cups superfine sugar
6 large eggs
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Apricots and assembly:
2/3 cup Grand Marnier
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 cups dried apricots (about 8 ounces)
1 1 1/2" piece peeled ginger, sliced
Lightly sweetened whipped cream (for serving)
Special Equipment
A 10"-diameter tube pan or angel food cake pan

Steps:

For cake:
Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 325°F. Butter and flour pan. Whisk salt, cream of tartar, cardamom, and 3 cups flour in a medium bowl.
Using an electric mixer on high speed, beat 2 cups butter until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Reduce speed to low and gradually add superfine sugar. Increase speed to high and beat until very light and creamy, 6-8 minutes longer. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating to blend between additions. Beat in cream and vanilla. Reduce speed to low; gradually add dry ingredients, mixing until mostly combined. Finish mixing with a rubber spatula just until combined. Scrape batter into prepared pan.
Bake cake, rotating halfway through, until top is golden brown and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean, 70-80 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack; let cake cool completely before turning out.
DO AHEAD: Cake can be baked 3 days ahead. Store tightly wrapped at room temperature.
For apricots and assembly:
Bring Grand Marnier, granulated sugar, and 2/3 cup water to a boil in a small saucepan, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add apricots and ginger, reduce heat to low, and simmer gently until apricots are very soft, 20-25 minutes. Let cool.
Remove ginger just before serving. Serve cake with apricots and syrup and whipped cream.
DO AHEAD: Apricots can be poached 1 week ahead. Cover and chill.

Grand Marnier Pound Cake image

Provided by Lynnda Cloutier

Categories Cakes

Number Of Ingredients 12

1 cup unsalted butter,2 sticks, softened
1 2/3 cups sugar
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 ts. salt
1/4 cup grand marnier
1 tbsp. grated orange zest
5 eggs
GLAZE:
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/4 cups grand marnier
1/4 cup sugar

Steps:

1. For the cake, preheat oven to 350. Generously grease a 10 inch fluted tube pan. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl with mixer on high speed, beat butter til creamy. Gradually beat in the sugar and continue beating til mixture is light and fluffy. Turn mixer speed to low.l
3. Sift in flour, baking powder and salt. Beat just til flour is absorbed. Beat in Grand Marnier and orange zest. Beat in eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.
4. Spread batter into prepared pan. Smooth the top evenly. Bake til cake shrinks from side of pan and skewer inserted in middle comes out clean, about 1 hour and 5 minutes. Let stand in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes, then carefully unmold cake onto a second rack. placed over a piece of wax paper or foil
5. For gflaze: mix the orange juice, Grand Marnier and sugar in a small pan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, lower heat and simmer til mixture forms a light syrup, about 5 minutes. Brush the syrup all over the warm cake. When the cake is cool, transfer it to a serving plate.