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Golden Milk Cake

October 12, 2018 by Joy the Baker 27 Comments

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We’re changing the tone of things in the kitchen.  Can you feel it?  It feels like we need a different kind of nourishment.  Warming and routine. Roasted and rooted.

I find myself gravitating towards Golden Milk every autumn and winter.  It’s the drink I stir together when I’ve dimmed the lights in my kitchen to just one – that thing I do to signal to my body that we get to rest soon.  Golden Milk has a lullaby quality while also feeling almost as indulgent as ice cream.  It’s settling. It feels like roots likely because it comes from roots.

It’s with great affection that I pour my favorite spiced drink over vanilla cake. The cake is concepted like a Tres Leches Cake with less milks and more spice flavor.  Chilled to settle. Swept with lightly whipped cream to serve.

It’s gentle, and simple, and still feels special.  Here’s how:

I love a humble cake in a square pan.

It’s not fussy. It’s the sort of cake that sits in the fridge, loosely covered in plastic wrap, visited often with a butter knife as people sneak slivers here and there.

This is the sort of cake that comes together in one big bowl though the use of exactly one million small bowls of ingredients feels particularly organized and indulgent until it comes time to wash them all.  A little bit of cake mise-en-place helps me safeguard against forgetting the baking soda or double adding the baking soda while forgetting the sugar.  Essentially, I’ll do more dishes for a higher cake success rate.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Halfway done! (Not really… but essentially.)

Pour sugar into a bowl, dramatically from up high.

Add melted butter, every bit.  Add a few eggs, too.

Whisk in the buttermilk creating a creamy, glossy, on-you-way-to-cake mixture.

Add the dry ingredients to the wet.

And whisk to a fluffy thickness.

Whisk until any flour lumps have eased out and the batter is thick and pourable.

Pour into a greased pan.

And pop that gem in the oven.

While the cake bakes I mix together the golden milk.

It’s mostly coconut milk with the support of a dash of heavy cream and a splash of water.

Honey to sweeten.

Cinnamon and turmeric and a dash of ground ginger too.  I also add a few grinds of black pepper for just the slightest hint of spice.

The whole mixture is heated gently in a saucepan until just warm and the flavor of the spice has started to bloom.

Allow the cake to cool for a few (about 15) minutes when it comes out of the oven.  Breathe deeply in the kitchen. It smells like cake.  This is our moment.

Use a skewer to poke holes in the cake. From top to bottom.  Side to side.

Slowly pour the warmed golden milk over and into the cake. Slowly to give the cake time to absorb.  The liquid may begin to pool a bit around the edges. That’s ok, just keep it moving.

I find that this cake is best with a bit of quality time in the refrigerator – overnight to be exact. It helps the liquid absorb and settle into the cake and cools the crumb of the cake.  These will be dense little slices, nice and chill.

Lightly sweetened and lightly whipped cream.  Spread generously.

Sprinkle with chopped walnuts and hustle in there for a slice.

In dense, in that way cake can still be dense and delicious.  It’s moist in that way that you’ll allow.  It’s flavorful and cheeky and it’s cake so CAKE!

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Golden Milk Cake

★★★ 3 from 2 reviews
  • Prep Time: 0 hours
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Ingredients

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For the Cake:

  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or 1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract

For the Golden Milk:

  • 1 1/4 cup full fat coconut milk
  • 2 tablespoons heavy cream
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 3 tablespoons honey
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons turmeric
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • few grinds fresh cracked black pepper

For the Topping:

  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
  • pinch of salt
  • splash of vanilla extract
  • finely chopped toasted walnuts for topping

Instructions

  1. Place a rack in the center of the oven and heat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8-inch square cake pan and lightly dust with flour.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  3. In a small bowl, whisk together sugar, butter, eggs, and buttermilk. Whisk in the vanilla or almond extract.
  4. Add the flour mixture all at once to the wet ingredients. Stir until just combined and no lumps remain. Spoon batter into the prepared pan.
  5. Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
  6. While the cake bakes, in a small saucepan, stir together all of the ingredients for the golden milk. Stir until just warm, the honey is dissolved and the spices are distributed throughout. Remove from heat.
  7. Allow the cake to cool for 15 minutes. Use a skewer to poke holes into the cake, evenly across the entire top of the cake.
  8. Slowly pour the golden milk mixture over the cake. Allowing it to absorb all over.
  9. Allow to cool to room temperature and then cover with plastic wrap and allow to chill in the refrigerator overnight.
  10. When ready to serve, lightly whip heavy cream, powdered sugar, salt, and vanilla. Spread evenly over the cake. Sprinkle the edges with walnuts, slice, and enjoy! Cake will last well wrapped in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

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Reader Interactions

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Questions
  1. T.

    January 31, 2023 at 2:11 pm

    The blog instructs adding the dry ingredients to the wet but the written instructions has you adding the wet ingredients to the dry. I’d try this again to figure out which direction to follow but I was not a fan.

    ★

    Reply
    • Abby Mallett

      January 31, 2023 at 2:48 pm

      Hello there, in general it usually doesn’t make a huge difference. But generally dry ingredients into wet means more evenly mixed and less of a chance of dry pockets. Thank you for that though! I hope it works out better for you next go ’round! xo

      Reply
  2. AmbalaCakes

    October 26, 2021 at 10:49 pm

    Very informative

    ★★★★★

    Reply
  3. RLC

    November 10, 2018 at 12:14 pm

    Should all the golden milk mixture be used? Or just as much as it will take over a little while? Mine doesn’t seem to be absorbing all that well…

    Reply
    • joythebaker

      November 11, 2018 at 12:55 pm

      I poured very slowly and eventually got the whole mixture in. Take it slow but if you feel like you have more golden milk than you need then feel free to discard.

      Reply
  4. Cat

    October 16, 2018 at 5:52 pm

    i was going to do a practice thanksgiving pie for my birthday tomorrow, but lucky me, you came up with this and it is divine! thank you!!

    Reply
  5. Ashley

    October 12, 2018 at 7:55 pm

    Question, if you’re not into coconut, or allergic, is there a different milk you recommend? Thanks!!

    Reply
  6. Ashley

    October 12, 2018 at 3:45 pm

    This is so, so clever! Tres Leches is such a great comfort food cake and you found a way to make it extra cozy with honey and turmeric. I just made golden milk donuts and they are better than I expected. I have never enjoyed turmeric but somehow it takes on a magically delicious quality in dessert ;)

    Reply
  7. Cyndi

    October 12, 2018 at 2:48 pm

    Delicious sounding cake! I never would have guessed almond extract in the cake alongside the spices in the golden milk but I’d bet it’s wonderful. Also, what a cute outfit – I love your jeans, T-shirt and belt!

    Reply
  8. Yvonne

    October 12, 2018 at 12:01 pm

    Perfect size cake when you don’t need a lot but just have to bake something.
    Can’t wait to try this. Thank you!
    Love reading your posts.

    Reply
  9. Sina

    October 12, 2018 at 8:39 am

    Joy, I love this frame of your kitchen in the pictures! That’s how I (and probably most of us) prepare our cakes: standing at a counter that is occupied by “some” things, rearranging and balancing it out as we go, with one corner of the cake pan sticking over the edge of the counter… <3
    Ant the recipe sounds wonderful!
    Wishing you restorative moments this weekend! Sina

    Reply
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