Brown Butter Skillet Cake

Brown butter gives this cake a nutty aroma and a buttery crumb. Baked in a cast iron skillet, it has wonderfully chewy, caramelized edges.  

OMG, can you believe all the amazing things popping up on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest in prep for Christmas?? Since I am only a few months into blogging – following a thousand food bloggers and watching all the social media platforms – I am mostly filled with awe at the effort that all the awesome bloggers take, the abundance of creativity, the hard work that shines through. I spend most of the time with my mouth open in amazement and pools of saliva forming over the awesome creations. I want to be invited over to everyone’s house to share their meals and be on all the cookie-exchange lists so I can sample everything! Does everyone feel the same way? Even the seasoned bloggers?

What I have here is not a Christmas-sy cookie, a festive cake, a spiced libation, a rich fancy dessert to feed a crowd or a cute house made of cookie! It is a ‘slow-down’ cake – a simple, quick to make cake, ideal for all those who work so hard to make Christmas so special in every home! This is a cake for slow afternoons with a cup of coffee or tea to enjoy by yourself or with a special few people. A cake for snowy mornings when you want the house to be filled with buttery warmth and nutty fragrance. It is sturdy, rich cake made in a cast iron skillet that gives it chewy cookie like edges.

Lets just say, I was feeling more confident after my last skillet recipe – Pear and Berry Pie and a string of other recipes I made in the skillet, like the gorgeous Dutch Baby Pancake made using Jennifer from Seasons and Supper’s recipe and a rustic North African Basbousa by Nargisse of My Moroccan Food. Although the latter, was not originally made in a cast iron, I gave it a shot, just because it looked so tasty and I absolutely had to try it.

Brown Butter Skillet Cake  

Ingredients – 9inch fat cake
1 cup / 2 sticks butter
1½ cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
½ cup almond meal
1½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
4 large eggs
1 ½ cups sugar
½ tsp vanilla

Heat oven to 350F. Line the base of the skillet with parchment paper.

In a small saucepan, heat the butter on medium heat, till it starts to turn golden brown and smells nutty. Take off the heat and set aside.

Whisk together, flour, almond meal, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside

Cream eggs and sugar till light and creamy. Gently mix in cooled browned butter. Fold in the dry ingredients till incorporated.

Pour into the skillet and bake for 45 – 50 minutes. If the cake is browning too much, too fast, cover with aluminum foil till cooked through and toothpick comes clean.

Let cake cool in the pan for 30 minutes, loosen the edges and remove the cake from the pan. It should come out easily. Store in airtight container. It actually tastes better the next day. The cake freezes well.

Note – the pear fan looks pretty, but it makes the centre of the cake sink in a bit, probably due to extra moisture.

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