Professor Butter Beard’s August Pound Cake
One 9” Loaf Pound Cake
1 cup dried pears, diced and soaked in apple cider overnight
1 medium zucchini, grated and squeezed to remove excess water
¾ cup hazelnuts, roasted and coarsely chopped
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp fine sea salt
2 tsp Prof BB’s August Spice Mix (see below)
1 cup granulated sugar
Zest of one lemon
4 ounces (one stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla paste
2 large eggs, room temperature
½ cup buttermilk
Syrup:
Reserved soaking liquid from the pears
½ cup granulated sugar
Prof BB’s August Spice Mix:
2 Tbsp ginger
1 Tbsp cinnamon
½ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
½ tsp allspice
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
1) The night before baking, dice the dried pears and add enough apple cider to cover the fruit by ½”. When ready to bake, drain the pears reserving the soaking liquid.
2) Spray a 9” loaf pan with baking spray and line with parchment paper. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
3) Grate the zucchini onto a clean dishtowel. Squeeze out the excess water and set at the ready. Lightly toast the hazelnuts, coarsely chop, and set at the ready.
4) Whisk together the dry mixture: the flour, baking powder, salt and 2 tsp of the spice mix.
5) In a standing mixer, mix together the sugar and zest until evenly combined. Add the butter and cream together for 5 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and then the eggs, one at a time. On low speed, add 1/3 of the dry, ½ of the buttermilk, 1/3 of the dry, remaining buttermilk, remaining dry. Remove the bowl from the stand and fold in the zucchini, drained pears and hazelnuts. Scrape the batter into the pan and place on the center rack of your oven. Lower the temperature to 325 degrees and bake for 45-50 minutes until a wooden skewer comes out clean.
6) While the loaf is baking, bring the reserved soaking liquid and ½ cup sugar to a simmer. Simmer for five minutes to create a syrup.
7) Remove the loaf from the oven, let cool 15 minutes, then brush the syrup over the loaf. Let the loaf cool completely in the pan before removing to serve.
