Earl Grey Tea Cake

I have developed a bad habit involving forgetting to put away or use particular items . For instance, I've had my tape measure sitting by the door of my closet since I hung a shelf in it almost a month ago. Yet, there it sits. Wow, that was embarrassing to admit... When I do notice it, I think about needing to put it up, then twenty other thoughts enter my head and I move on. And there the lonely tape measure sits. I'm not sure why I do this sort of thing. Maybe there's some psychological explanation for it.  Or, maybe it's laziness.  Now that I think about it, I'm almost one hundred percent positive it's laziness.

I've had sort of a similar experience with garbanzo bean flour. I bought some a while ago intending to try to experiment with it.  But there it sat in the pantry. I think part of the reason for its neglect was that my first experience with it wasn't pleasant. The raw dough tasted bean-y in the most unpleasant way possible.  And, the finished product was not much better. This pretty much put me completely off of the flour. It was a shame because I had bought the Flying Apron's Gluten Free & Vegan Baking Book right before that incident and many of the recipes relied on garbanzo flour.

I decided to read through the book again recently and make it a point to just go ahead and bake with the damn flour. I started off with the scones from that book, making a plain vanilla version that I dressed up with a rather simple glaze. They weren't bad but they didn't exactly have that true "scone" texture. They seemed like more of a soft biscotti or cookie, but overall they were pretty tasty. I was able to detect a slightly bean-y aftertaste but this is most likely because I'm so sensitive to the taste. I decided to attempt a tea cake next and share my own adaptation of it here with you. I'm still not completely sold on garbanzo flour, but I figured I would see what your opinions were if you've baked with it. I think it works well with assertive flavors (like citrus, spices, or chocolate) that will mask any bean-y flavors it may impart in baked goods.

This tea cake isn't too complicated in terms of the ingredients needed. In the version in the book, the recipe only uses brown rice flour and garbanzo flour, but I found I needed to add a bit of arrowroot to help thicken the batter a bit. I added some thinly sliced pears to the top of the cake, but this was mostly for aesthetic reasons. If you leave the pears off, I would recommend making a simple lemon glaze for the top. Or, simply dust the top with a bit of powdered sugar. This makes 1 regular sized loaf but it would easily work in a few mini pans to make it more manageable. Store extra loaves in the freezer until needed.

Earl Grey Tea Cake
adapted from here

130g (about 1/2 cup) arrowroot flour
120g (1 cup) garbanzo bean flour
350g (about 2 3/4 cups) brown rice flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp fine grain sea salt
zest of 1 large (or 2 small) lemons
3 tbsp minced candied ginger
100g (about 2/3 cup) safflower oil (or other neutral tasting oil)
300g (1 cup plus 2 tbsp) pure maple syrup
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups strongly brewed Earl Grey tea, cooled
thinly sliced pear for the top (optional)

powdered sugar or lemon glaze to serve (optional)

Preheat your oven to 375.  Lightly grease and line a standard loaf pan (either 8x4 or 9x5) with parchment paper leaving an overhang.

Combine the oil, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and tea in the bowl of a stand mixer. In a separate bowl, combine the flours, baking soda, and sea salt and whisk until thoroughly combined. Add the lemon zest and ginger and mix well. With the mixer running, begin slowly adding the dry ingredients to the wet. Once all of the dry ingredients have been added, mix until no more flour is visible and a smooth batter forms.

Pour the batter into your prepared pan, then tap it on the counter a few times to release any air bubbles. If using, arrange the pear slices on top, then place it in the oven.  Bake it on the center rack for 45 to 60 minutes or until the top is golden and springs back when touched.  You can also insert a tester into the middle which should come out clean when the cake is done. Cool the loaf in the pan for 10 minutes, then move it to a rack using the parchment paper to cool completely. Serve slices with a bit of powdered sugar or a lemon glaze if desired. Makes 1 standard loaf (8-10 servings)