Growing up we always had Blue Bell Vanilla Bean Ice Cream in the freezer and as an adult I have loved making recipes with that delightful flavor! :-)
This one certainly does not disappoint!
I served this cake to two different groups of friends who all raved about it!
It is an easy cake but does require a couple of hours to make, bake and cool . . .
believe me, it is well worth the wait! :-)
Vanilla Bean Bundt Cake
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/4 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
2 vanilla beans, halved lengthwise
4 large eggs
1/4 teaspoon pure lemon extract
1 cup buttermilk
Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Generously butter pan and dust with flour, knocking out excess. Whisk together dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda,
and salt. Beat together butter and sugar in an electric mixer at medium
speed until pale and fluffy(about 5 minutes). Scrape seeds from vanilla
beans with tip of a paring knife and add into butter mixture, reserving
pods for another use, and beat until well combined (about 1 minute). Add
eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition, then beat in lemon
extract until well combined. At low speed ("stir" setting on KitchenAid
mixer) add flour mixture and milk alternately in batches, beginning and
ending with flour mixture, mixing until just combined. Spoon batter into pan, smoothing and spreading evenly. Gently tap pan on counter to eliminate air bubbles. Bake until the tip of a knife or skewer inserted into center of
cake comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cool in pan 1 hour, then invert onto
a rack and cool completely, about 1 hour more. (
at this point put the vanilla bean in the milk)
Vanilla Bean Glaze
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
2-3 tablespoons whole milk
approximately 1 cup confectioners' sugar (icing sugar or powdered sugar)
Split vanilla bean and scrape seeds into whole milk. Let sit in a
spouted container, such as a large pyrex measuring cup, for about an
hour. Add confectioners' sugar gradually, whisking, until you get
desired consistency--about 1 cup. You want to make sure that it's not
too runny, or it won't dry white on the cake, and will run off too
quickly. It should take a few seconds to whisk it, and it will feel too
thick at first--keep whisking until you get desired thickness. If too
thick, add a teaspoon or so of the vanilla milk. Once cake has cooled, drizzle glaze over cake.
Sweetapolita