Lemongrass Butter Cake

I didn't plan to bake any cakes when I went home for Christmas but looking at my mum's collection of a gazillion cake tins, I couldn't resist. Oh, have I mentioned that my mum is not an active cook? But she has 3 kitchen areas with a thousand cookware, a million tableware and a gazillion kitchen accesories. Name what you want and you'll get it in her kitchen. I was looking for a cookie press one day and my mum took out some cookie cutters, a manual cookie press and an unused box of electric cookie gun for me to choose, I was...shocked. How I wish it was my kitchen.

Enough of cookie presses, back to cake tins. I knew that I had to bake a butter pound cake when I found a bundt pan in the kitchen. The last pound cake I made was a failure as all I had were round springform tins. Butter or pound cakes are characterised by their high proportion of fat and sugar to flour. The batter is usually very dense and so a bundt/ tube/ loaf pan is often recommended. I infused it with lemongrass this time to give the rich buttery cake a clean fresh taste.

Ingredients:

• 250 g unsalted butter
• 220 g caster sugar
• 4 large eggs (about 200 g)
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 2 stalks lemongrass - bashed
• 250 g cake flour - sifted
• 1 tsp baking powder

Directions:

• In a saucepan, bring milk, heavy cream and lemongrass to a simmer. Remove from heat and let steep, covered for about 30 mins. Strain cream mixture through a sieve into a bowl.
• Generously butter a bundt pan and dust with flour, knocking out excess flour.
• Sift together cake flour and baking powder. Repeat sifting into another bowl. Flour will have been sifted 3 times total.
• Beat together butter and sugar at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy.
• Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Reduce speed to low and add half of the flour, then all of the cream, then remaining flour, mixing well after each addition.
• Scrape down side of bowl, then beat at medium-high speed for about 2 mins. Batter will become creamier and satiny.
• Pour batter into buttered and dusted pan and hit pan against work surface once or twice lightly to eliminate any air bubbles.
• Bake at a 160°C pre-heated oven until golden brown and a wooden pick or a skewer inserted in the middle of the cake (about 20-25 mins).
• Best served warm. Re-heat in the microwave for about 15-20 secs before serving.