Yuzu Cake + Jam and Honey

Citrus has a way of arriving in the middle of winter, swooping in with bright colors and flavors that remind us of the warmer seasons.

Blood oranges, fresh yuzu, Eureka lemons, pink grapefruit, sweet meyer lemons, clementines.

We don’t have frozen roads or piles of snow here in Santa Cruz. We do have slightly frosty mornings, a marine layer that only breaks up every few days with a blue sky that shines so bright you’ve gotta wear shades. If you are looking for a break from the season's dreary sky, I've got just the thing.

January’s Cake Line Up

A mixed half-dozen: Half Fresh Citrus, Half Jam & Honey.

Fresh Citrus Cake: A bright grapefruit cake filled with yuzu curd, topped with a vanilla marshmallow and finished in white chocolate.

If you’ve never tasted yuzu before, I can only describe it as a very unique citrus flavor. I find it to be a cross between a grapefruit and a meyer lemon, with a hint of lime. Others describe notes of tangerine. Each citrusy cake is filled with an eggless yuzu curd made with Miyazaki grown yuzu juice, sugar, and coconut milk.

*Jam & Honey Cake: *The other half of January’s sixer is a blackberry honey cake, glazed with honey butterscotch, topped with a vanilla marshmallow and finished in dark chocolate.

This cake is made with a generous amount of organic honey. We swirled in a locally made blackberry pie jam, giving this cake has warm notes of cinnamon and coriander. Glazed with a honey butterscotch, each bite will have your taste buds chasing after each note of honey, blackberry, vanilla, butterscotch ... then zing! The dark chocolate arrives on the scene.

Pairing Notes: Lemon cakes can be tricky to pair beverages with. A hot Gen Mai Cha or green tea would compliment the citrus cake perfectly.

Pair the Jam & Honey cake with a chocolatey South American single-origin coffee, plus a swirl of cream.

Pro Tip: Chill slightly and serve. Or freeze for up to 21 days, defrost up to 2 hours before serving.

Happy New Year!