A couple of weeks ago I spent an evening at the Oregon Coast with Eva and Christiann who put together an incredible beach shoot with CB2. They invited me to come along (with a cake, of course!), an offer I couldn’t refuse.
The drive down the 101 was beautiful, the terrain changes so much between Seattle and the coast. It was overcast and drizzly as I made my way down winding roads through the woods. I crested a hill, the clouds dissipated, and the landscape opened up to a picturesque town where the Columbia River meets the Pacific.
I drove a little further and got to the beach just as Eva was starting the fire. We only had a few hours until sunset, we set up quickly and began prepping the meal. Eva stuffed trout with lemon and herbs and wrapped them in fig leaves from her garden, roasting it over an open fire. Christiann mixed and poured citrus, rosemary and gin cocktails into lovely gold detailed glasses as fog rolled in at the north end of the beach. We cut the cake before dinner and enjoyed a slice as the last of the evening light reflected off the water and ended the night on an empty beach, circled around the campfire.
Be sure to check out Eva and Christiann’s posts for their gorgeous photos and recipes!
thyme butter cake
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Total time
Serves: serves 6-8
Ingredients
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter
- handful of fresh thyme sprigs (I used lemon thyme) or 2 tbsp dried thyme
- 2 cups (396 g) sugar
- 6 egg whites, at room temperature
- 3¼ cups flour (360 g)
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- 1 teaspoon lemon extract
- 1.5 teaspoons lemon zest
- 1⅓ cups buttermilk
Instructions
- Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat, swirling occasionally. When the butter just reaches boiling temperature remove it from heat, stir in the thyme and steep for an hour or more, even overnight. Strain the thyme and cool the butter to room temperature before using.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prep 3 x 6 inch cake pans by buttering them, lining the bottoms with rounds of parchment paper, then dusting them with flour and tapping out the excess.
- Beat the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, then add the egg whites gradually, beating to combine, about 2 minutes.
- Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl and set aside. Mix the buttermilk, vanilla bean paste, lemon extract and zest together and set aside.
- Add the dry ingredients in 3 additions, alternating with the buttermilk mixture, mixing just until combined or finishing by hand.
- Distribute the batter evenly into the prepared pan and smooth with a spatula or the back of a spoon. Gently tap the pans on the counter a couple of times to release any air bubbles trapped in the thick batter. Bake for 20 minutes, then rotate the pans in the oven and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes, checking every 3 minutes for doneness. A toothpick inserted into the center of the cake should come out clean and the top should spring back to the touch. Place on cooling racks until the pans are cool enough to handle, then run a knife around the edges of the cake to loosen it and turn it out onto the cooling racks to come to room temperature.
Assembly// Level the cakes if desired. Place the first layer face up on a cake board or serving plate and lightly brush with simple syrup. Smooth a thin layer of buttercream on top, then pipe a ’dam’ of buttercream around the edge and fill with lemon curd. Place the second layer on top, filling with only buttercream and alternating fillings until you’ve placed the last layer face down (so the smooth side is up) and press to secure. Place the cake in the fridge for a few minutes to firm up the buttercream and make icing the cake easier. Roughly ice the top and outsides of the cake. Decorate with thyme, fruit, flowers or as desired. Serve at room temperature. May be refrigerated for up to 3 days.
lemon swiss merengue
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Serves: 5 cups
Ingredients
- 5 egg whites
- 1¼ cups (198 g) superfine sugar
- 1½ cups (3 sticks) butter, cool but not cold and cut into cubes
- 2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (from meyer lemons, if possible)
- 1½ teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon lemon extract, more to taste
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Wipe the metal bowl of an electric stand mixer, whisk attachment and a whisk with vinegar or lemon juice and a paper towel to remove any trace of grease.
- Fill a saucepan with 1 inch of water and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Place a metal mixing bowl over the pot of simmering water (bowl should fit snugly but should not touch the water) and add the egg whites and sugar. Stir constantly with a whisk until the temperature reaches 140 degrees on a candy thermometer or until all the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is foamy. Remove from heat.
- Beat egg whites and sugar on high speed until the bottom of the bowl is completely neutral, about 10 minutes. Switch to the paddle attachment and turn mixer on low speed.
- Begin slowly adding the butter pieces and mix until the texture is smooth. If the buttercream curdles, keep mixing, it'll come back together.
- Add the vanilla bean paste, lemon juice, zest and extract and mix well. Taste, add a pinch of salt, and taste again. If you like a stronger lemon flavor, add ¼ tsp more lemon extract, tasting after each addition until the desired taste is achieved.
- You can store buttercream in the fridge in an airtight container for 3 days, or in the freezer for up to 6 weeks.
- * if you want to fully ice the cake, double the recipe
thyme simple syrup
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Serves: ½ c
Ingredients
- ¼ cup water
- ¼ cup (50 g) sugar
- handful fresh thyme or 1 tbsp dried thyme
Instructions
- Heat sugar and water until the sugar has dissolved, then add the thyme and steep for 15 minutes or more. Strain thyme leaves out and discard.
meyer lemon curd
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Serves: 3 c
Ingredients
- zest from 1 Meyer lemon
- ⅔ cup Meyer lemon juice (from 4-5 lemons)
- 4 whole eggs plus 6 egg yolks
- 1 cup (200 g) sugar
- ¾ cup unsalted butter, cool but not cold and cut into cubes
Instructions
- Zest and juice your lemons, being careful to avoid the bitter white pith when zesting.
- Prepare a double boiler by filling a saucepan with an inch of water and placing a snugly fitting stainless steel bowl into it, be sure the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water.
- Whisk the juice, eggs, and sugar in the bowl until smooth. Continue to whisk until the curd is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, then remove the bowl from the double boiler and stir in the cubes of butter slowly.
- Strain the curd through a fine-mesh sieve, then stir in the zest and refrigerate in an air tight container with plastic wrap over the surface to prevent a skin from forming for up to 3 days or freeze for up to a month.
Can’t wait to try this elegant-looking cake! You’re on one of my fav parts of Oregon Coast!🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
I just LOVE the coast, isn’t it gorgeous? Thank you so much, let me know how it turns out if you do?
wow that cake is delicious. just found your beautiful blog and love it. Hope it is ok if I share one cake from you in my sweet sunday on my bog.
Your stile is so interesting and delicious.
greating from a new follower from Iceland
Stína
Thank you so much! It was delicious! You’re welcome to share, with proper credit of course 🙂 Thanks so much for saying hello!