Le Pain d’epices is a French classic cake made using basic ingredients – rye flour, honey, and spices. The cake was originally known as sour dough bread which used to be left in a wooden trough to rest in a cool place for months. This way the dough bread would naturally rise in its size.
But in modern days, baking soda is added to expand the bread of this cake.
Le Pain d’epices makes a wonderful afternoon snack when you are craving for something sweet. The appetizing cake can either be served with berries, cream or your favorite fruit jellies. Use the delicious recipe of Le Pain d’epices, and enjoy the flavorsome taste at home!
Health Benefits
Le Pain d’epices is mainly made form rye flour which has the most impressive health benefits: it increases the efficiency of the digestive system, and helps boost metabolism too! It also protects you from various diseases like diabetes, blood pressure, cancer and asthma.
Ingredients
cup of flour: 3 1/2
dark rye flour: 1/2 cup
baking soda: 2 1/2 tsp
ground cinnamon: 1 1/2 tsp
ground ginger: 1 1/2 tsp
teaspoon of salt: 1/2
freshly grated nutmeg: 1/4 tsp
ground cloves: 1/4 tsp
Freshly ground black pepper: 1/4 tsp
anise seeds: 1/2 tsp
unsalted butter: 2 ounces
large egg: 1
cup of honey: 1
finely-grated orange zest: 1 tbsp
cup of water: 1
How To Make Le Pain d’epices
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F or 180 degrees C.
- Butter a 9 inch baking pan. Dust it with flour, and tap out the excess.
- Mix together the flour, rye flour, baking soda, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground cloves, grated nutmeg, anise seeds and salt in a medium-sized bowl.
- With the help of an electric beater, beat the butter, egg, honey and orange zest in a large bowl. Beat until well combined.
- Pour in the water. Then add in the dry ingredients. Scrape the sides of the bowl to make sure everything is well mixed.
- Now transfer the batter to the prepared baking pan. Let it bake for an hour, or until the top of the cake turns brown.
- To make sure Le Pain d’epices is properly cooked insert a toothpick in the centre of the cake, if it comes out clean then it means that the cake has properly cooked.
- Take it out of the oven and transfer it to a cooling rack. Let it cool for 10 minutes before slicing.
- Now slice the cake and serve it on a serving plate.
Trivia
- Le Pain d’epices is also called French cake or a quick cake.
The main ingredients of Le Pain d’epices are rye flour, honey and spices, but in Alsace, a tradition follows the incorporation of a pinch of cinnamon in the cake as well!