Hartford Election Cake with (optional) lemon glaze.
Hartford Election Cake is so named because it came from an old recipe in Hartford, CT, where in Colonial times elections went on for days and voters appreciated the sustenance of a hearty baked good rich in dried fruit and spiked with brandy or rum. This recipe is very different from our original Election Cake which has more crumb and less fruit. The early recipe had migrated to today’s NYT Cooking version, and we’ve tweaked further per below. (You can vary the fruits to your preference as long as the total volume is the same.) Makes one 10-inch bundt cake.
Ingredients
½ c dried cranberries (unsweetened)
½ c dried currants
½ c golden raisins
½ c brandy or rum
1 t ground cinnamon
½ t ground ginger
¼ t ground cloves
¼ t ground allspice
1 t vanilla extract
1 T all purpose flour
1 c whole milk
1 T active dry yeast (the NYT recipe used 2 packets, or 4 ½ t; you can do the same if you want a faster rise)
1 T lemon zest (zest of one lemon)
1 c packed dark brown sugar
4 c less 1 T all purpose flour
¼ t grated nutmeg
2 t Kosher salt
2 large eggs at room temperature, lightly beaten
8 T (one stick) unsalted butter at room temperature, plus extra for the bundt mold
For the optional glaze:
2 c confectioner’s sugar
3 T lemon juice
1 T brandy or rum
Texture is like a fruitcake but less dense.
Method: prepare the dried fruit by mixing with spirits in a bowl; toss until everything is moistened. Fold in cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cloves and vanilla extract and 1 T flour and macerate for at least an hour and preferably overnight.
Warm the milk in microwave (or a small pan) until it is just above body temperature. Transfer to the bowl of an orbital mixer (i.e. Kitchenaid); add yeast and give it a few minutes to bloom. Add flour, brown sugar, eggs, salt and nutmeg and mix with a spatula until no dry spots remain. Transfer bowl to the mixer and fit the dough hook; knead at low speed till the dough is smooth, about 3 minutes. (If the motor strains as ours did, add just a little more milk.) Cut the butter into several pieces and add all at once; knead 6 minutes or until the dough is very smooth. Remove dough hook, cover with a towel and rest 1 hour. (The dough will rise during this time but very little.)
Add dried fruit mixture to dough and mix thoroughly. It’s best to do this with your hands. Generously butter a bundt pan and spoon in the batter. Use a spatula to smooth the surface; we found the cake rose more in the center so would form the dough so it’s higher at the edges next time. Cover with a towel and rest at least 2 hours. When ready, the dough will have risen slightly and the surface will be slightly puffy; make a dent in it with your finger and it should spring back slowly.
At bake time, heat oven to 350 degrees with a sheet pan on a middle rack. Place the cake on the sheet pan and bake approximately 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. While it is baking, make the glaze if you are using by mixing confectioners’ sugar, lemon juice and 1 T spirits. Take the cake out of the oven and rest 5 minutes. Flip out of the mold onto a plate or flat work surface. Brush on a good amount of the glaze while the cake is hot so it can melt into the crumb. Cool to room temperature and brush on the rest of the glaze, which will harden. Cut and serve your Hartford Election Cake, probably with more spirits mixed into cider or hot buttered rum.
