Grapefruit Tea Cake

grapefruit tea cakeGrapefruit is a much neglected citrus in baking. Cookbooks, blogs and recipe sites are full of lemon, orange and lime goodies. Grapefruit though? Not so much. And why? I have no idea, other than the fact that the flavor is a bit more subtle than some of the other citrus, so you have to work a little harder to get the most out of it. I love grapefruit though, and since I eat one just about every day when it is in season, it’s not like I am groping about for ways to use it up. Still, I wanted to see what I could do to bring out it’s best qualities in a cake, and that is how this tea cake came to be. A tea cake is usually light textured, but moist, not overly sweet, and featuring simple flavors. A perfect vehicle for getting grapefruit to play nicely in a baked goodie.

There nothing complicated here in this recipe. You will want to prepare the grapefruit for starters. Use a microplaneor other small grater to remove the zest and then extract the juice. I used ones of those glass juicer things, though they aren’t really big enough for the job – mostly it’s a matter of brute force to squeeze out the juice. Fortunately, one grapefruit will probably be enough for the job. If you serve it like I did, you will need a second grapefruit for the supremes to go on top. You can find directions for getting the sections out in my Grapefruit Marmalade recipe from last year. I also took some of the zest from that second grapefruit to make the drizzle for the top.

Generously butter an 8 inch square pan pan, and flour pan, tapping out any excess flour. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Put 3/4 cup of granulated sugar in a small bowl and add the zest from one grapefruit [about 4 teaspoons give or take] and rub together with your fingertips, until well blended. This will really pull a lot of flavor from the peel.

Cream together
4 ounces soft butter
the sugar & grapefruit zest mixture
Then beat in, one at a time
2 large eggsAdd
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup fresh grapefruit juiceIn a small bowl, combine
1 & 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom

Add to creamed mixture and beat just until combined.Spread evenly in the prepared pan and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until a tester or toothpick comes out with just a few moist crumbs attached.Cool for about 5 minutes in the pan and then carefully remove and set back on the rack, right side up, to cool further.Mix together
1 cup confectionery sugar
1 teaspoon grapefruit zest
1-2 teaspoons grapefruit juice
To serve, top with a couple of the grapefruit segments, and a a bit of the sugar drizzlegrapefruit tea cakeNow, if you aren’t so crazy about grapefruit, this will also work with orange, lemon or lime. It’s hard to imagine they would be any better than the grapefruit version though – totally yummy!

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19 Responses to Grapefruit Tea Cake

  1. annbb says:

    That looks delicious!

  2. how can i resist such temptation! :)

  3. Aggie says:

    Citrus cakes are my absolute favorite and I have been seeing lots of lemon ones lately, but this is my first grapefruit one! It looks so delicious!

  4. Donalyn says:

    LOL Sunny – don’t even try!

    thanks Aggie – I was very happy with how it turned out.

  5. Maria says:

    Lovely tea cake!

  6. Shelby says:

    I love grapefruit – this looks yummy!

  7. Donalyn says:

    Thanks Maria and Shelby :)

  8. Jeff Deasy says:

    Hi Donalyn, Just gorgeous..I’m ready to indulge with or without tea!! Thanks for sending, Jeff

  9. Donalyn says:

    Hi Jeff & thanks!

  10. This looks like a great simple cake. I’m a little nervous about the grapefruit, but since you say it’s delicious, I just might have to try it. I might start with a lime version though – that sounds wonderful to me!

  11. Donalyn says:

    It should be delicious using lime Megan – let me know how it goes if you do the substitution.

  12. megan says:

    I love all things citrus!

  13. Laura says:

    Hi Donalyn,

    This recipe sounds absolutely delicious! I am looking forward to grapefruit being in season in my area, as I love it. I have not tried a cake with it yet. I expect the citrus makes it a pretty moist cake.

  14. Oh yum! And I found this via Stumble, no less! :)

  15. Fuji Mama says:

    So glad to see grapefruit getting it’s due! This looks fabulous!

  16. I made a pink grapefruit quick bread a few weeks ago and loved the flavor the citrus added to the bread. Yours looks so pretty.

  17. marla says:

    I love grapefruit in baked goods. Have a muffin recipe that I need to post soon. Your tea cake looks wonderful!

  18. Pingback: Sweet and Juicy Citrus Recipes | Yummly

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