Saffron and Tahitian Vanilla Infused Cream Bundt Cake is a sophisticated and delicious cake that is equally at home on a picnic or as the finishing touch at an elegant dinner party. Affiliate links have been used to link to items I am discussing in this post.
When I chose to get a Golden Doodle I had no idea we were acquiring a canine yeti. Mind you, only in the winter but it was a COLD winter (as everyone knows by now) so of course I could not cut Skamp’s hair, so he would stay warm outside, and the result? The canine yeti. It is insane. And now that spring is coming, he feels inspired to go roaming in the tall grassed (weeded) fields, bringing back into the house every seed, leaf, twig and pod that has snagged on his coat. Yikes. He was supposed to get his hair cut today, but then it rained all day, and the fabulous groomer comes here and does it all outside–with her electric clippers. That are not safe in the rain.
So the yeti continues. And it is not his fault, but somehow with all that hair he feels even more underfoot than usual. Here he is photobombing what was otherwise a really lovely photo of a fantastic cake (a friend of mine remarked she wished she could see his cute face in this photo–Ha! I have not seen his cute face since, oh, about December!):
Light for my photos means a window for him to stare out of you know.
Sigh.
I’ve got spring fever and I’ve got it bad. And the first step, for some weird reason (probably akin to spring cleaning) is getting all of this hair off of my dog!
OK, now that I got that off my chest, about this cake–and that photo right there, by the way, is more what the picture was supposed to look like before Skamp came pushing his way into the picture. It is Bundt Bakers time, and guys I am so excited about this cake! The theme this month, chosen by our lovely host Deepti, was “spice.” I was thrown off for a minute, because while I realize not all of our participating bakers are from my neck of the woods, around here spice has more of an autumnal feel, and I of course am feeling spring fever like crazy. So I started thinking outside the box.
I wanted something with a lighter feel, and could not get saffron out of my head. I confirmed that we would consider it a spice for this event, and went from there. I chose a cake with a cream base instead of oil or butter, and then infused the saffron (and a Tahitian vanilla bean) into the cream to boost the saffron and vanilla flavor. I added a little fiori di sicilia to kind of round it all out (if you cannot get that extract, try just a little lemon zest instead, maybe a teaspoon). This cake went over like gangbusters! My kids went crazy for it, John and I loved it, and the cake was gone in no time. The cake I adapted from, by the way, was a Cream Bundt Cake on my blog, but was originally adapted from Lauren Chattman’s Cake Keeper Cakes: 100 Simple Recipes for Extraordinary Bundt Cakes, Pound Cakes, Snacking Cakes and Other Good-To-The-Last-Crumb Treats
And if you are wondering–as I would be–the pan that produced this gorgeous cake (I am so in love with this pattern) is the Chiffon Bundt Pan from Williams Sonoma. I was concerned at first the pattern would be too faint, but with a dusting of powdered sugar, I thought the result was pretty fabulous!
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 2-3 generous pinches good quality saffron (use lesser amount if cost is prohibitive)
- 1 Tahitian vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped out and reserved separately
- 3 cups (378 g) AP flour
- 1 T baking powder
- 1/2 t salt
- 6 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 3/4 cups sugar
- 1 t fiori di sicilia extract
- 2 t Tahitian vanilla
- powdered sugar for dusting
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Place the cream in a smaller saucepan over low heat. Crumble the saffron with your fingers and add it to the cream along with the scraped vanilla bean. Bring the cream to a near boil and then turn off the heat. Leave the cream to steep, stirring occasionally, as it cools to room temperature.
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Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease and flour (or use something like Baker's Joy, which I do) a 12-cup bundt pan, or a 10 cup bundt pan, in which case also grease and flour a mini bundt pan or 2 mini loaf pans. Set aside.
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Whisk together the flour, salt and baking powder. Set aside.
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Mix the eggs and sugar together; either using a mixer or some serious arm power, beat on medium high speed for 5 minutes, until pale yellow and thick.
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Beat in the vanilla bean seeds, vanilla extract and fiori di sicilia.
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Pour the cooled cream through a sieve--after you have removed the vanilla bean, add as much of the saffron back into the cream as possible.
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While mixing (on medium low if with a mixer), pour 1/3 of the cream into the egg mixture in a steady stream. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture and mix just to combine. Scrape the sides down and repeat twice, until all of the flour and cream has been used. At the end beat on medium speed (or use your hand) for 1 minute to combine.
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Scrape the batter into the prepared pan(s). Bake the cake for about 25 minutes for mini cakes, 50 minutes for a 10 cup pan and 1 hour for a 12 cup pan. Either way watch for signs: the baked cake(s) will be fragrant and golden brown, and a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake should come out clean or with just a few crumbs attached. The sides will also pull away from the pan.
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Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes and then invert it onto a cooling rack (I like to do this on top of parchment paper so that the cake does not sink into the wires). Let cool completely before dusting with powdered sugar and slicing.
#BundtBakers is a group of Bundt loving bakers who get together once a month to bake Bundts with a common ingredient or theme. Follow our Pinterest board right here. We take turns hosting each month and choosing the theme/ingredient. This month Deepti from BakingYummies is hosting and she has chosen the theme as spices.
Last month all of us baked with chocolate and after thoroughly enjoying each other’s cakes, it was time to add some spice to the group.
If you are a food blogger and would like to join us, just send an email to Stacy at foodlustpeoplelove @ gmail.com or ask to join our private Facebook group.
And don’t forget to take a peek at what other talented bakers have baked this month. Here are the links:
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- Orange Cardamom Mini Bundt Cakes by Alice at Hip Foodie Mom
- Cinnamon Roll Bundt Cake by Tara at Noshing With the Nolands
- Fresh Apple Cake by Lauren at Sew You Think You Can Cook
- Sweet Potato Pound Cake by Renee at Magnolia Days
- Rum & Ginger Grapefruit Cake by Kelly at Passion Kneaded
- Apple Cinnamon Bundt Cake by Kathya at Basic N Delicious
- Spiced Applesauce Bundt Cake with Brown Sugar Rum Glaze by Lauren at From Gate To Plate
- Saffron and Tahitian Vanilla Infused Bundt Cake by Laura at The Spiced Life
- Honey and Beer Spiced Bundt Cake by Felice at All That’s Left Are The Crumbs
- Saffron Vanilla Bean and Orange Mini Bundt Cake by Deepti at Bakingyummies
- Peach and Spiced Tea Bundt Cake by Stacy at Food Lust People Love
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Amazon affiliate links were used in this post, but only to link to items that I would be discussing and linking to anyway.
I think my favorite photo is the one with Skamp in it – such a natural picture of everyday life, and how can you resist such a sweet dog like that? And your bundt is just stunning. Yes, the pan is gorgeous, but it is what you put in the pan that makes it, and you have hit it out of the park.
Aww poor puppy running around with all that hair! And poor YOU having to clean it all up! I do second whoever said they wished his face was in the photobomb..I’m sure he’s a total cutie!
I love saffron in sweet things. It’s always such a fun, slightly eccentric flavor compared to Western desserts.
A beautiful cake Laura and perfect choice of pan. I don’t see saffron cakes often and really like that you shared this recipe today. I have some saffron in the pantry I need to use soon.
I love the photographs! It’s interesting that you have used cream instead of butter or oil. I’ll have to try this way. I’m glad your family loved the cake. Btw, the cake looks beautiful! nice patterns. Next time, please take a couple of snaps of your doggie too, I’m sure he won’t mind it! 😉
Ha! I was going to ask about the pan, Laura, but you beat me to it by telling. It is absolutely stunning with that sprinkling of sugar. Love the flavors too!
Those of us obsessed with bundt pans understand. 🙂
What a unique and gorgeous bundt with the saffron, love it!!
I’ve got to get my hands on some saffron! what a gorgeous bundt cake! and you made mini ones too?! love your Saffron and Tahitian Vanilla Infused Cream Bundt Cake!! your dog is like my 3 year old. . always standing by the window when I’m taking photos 🙂
Your pan creates the most beautiful cake I’ve ever seen – sprinkling with powdered sugar really helped bring out the pattern. Your photography is beautiful as well – I’m jealous!
Beautiful cake. Saffron is the most expensive spice in the world so it’s more than just a spice for this event.
Congrats on perfect creation!
Let me tell you this is a great bundt, pack in flavors and look amazing.
These cakes look brill! Thanks for sharing the recipe, can’t wait to try them for myself!
Beautiful bundt!!
It’s beautiful, Laura! It will be perfect for Easter and Mother’s Day celebrations!
Wow, this a cake you’d say is too beautiful to eat…
Who are we kidding, of course we’d still eat it!
So pretty!
Wow, this is SO beautiful and I love the flavors you used!!! Tahitian beans are my favorite beans. 🙂
How interesting! I’ve made a lot of bundt cakes over the years but never one with cream rather than butter or oil. That approach works great for scones though so I should have considered it earlier. And your flavor pairing of saffron and Tahitian vanilla is equally intriguing. must try this very soon. P.S. I just ordered Cake Keeper Cakes. 🙂
I’ve never baked with saffron, but this cake looks and sounds delicious! I do love a good Bundt cake!
I love this! Gorgeous. I am not very well-versed in using saffron or in baking…just a few specialties. I appreciate this lovely post and I’m adding it to my must-bake list! Thanks for the great info!!
Laura, I just got mini bundt pans like yours because I always look at your mini bundts and sigh with jealousy. Now that I got that off my chest – love this combination of spices, especially with the addition of fiori di siciliana, which I’ve just recently gotten and have become obsessed with. It lends such an amazing aroma – not like anything I have ever smelled before, even though it is supposedly just citrus and vanilla.