Description
This traditional Easter Cake recipe features a soft, slightly sweet yeast dough infused with lemon rind and anisette liqueur. The dough is shaped into festive cakes, baked until golden and light, then topped with a tangy lemon glaze and colorful edible sprinkles for a delightful holiday treat.
Ingredients
Scale
Dough Ingredients
- 1 cup warm milk
- 6 eggs, beaten
- 6 oz light olive oil
- 3 Tbsp anisette (or Sambuca, or other liqueur)
- 1 large lemon rind, grated
- 1 ¼ cups sugar
- 6 cups all-purpose flour (up to 7 cups or 840 g if using metric)
- ⅛ tsp salt
- 2 ¼ tsp active dry yeast
Icing & Decoration
- 4 cups confectioner’s sugar (powdered sugar)
- 4 ½ Tbsp lemon juice (and/or water)
- 1 Tbsp edible sprinkles (as needed for decorating)
Instructions
- Prepare dough liquids: In the bread machine container or stand mixer, combine warm milk, beaten eggs, light olive oil, and anisette liqueur. Add grated lemon rind to infuse citrus flavor.
- Add dry ingredients and yeast: For bread machine, add sugar, flour (starting with minimum amount), and salt, making a well in flour to add yeast. For stand mixer, dissolve yeast in warm milk first, then add liquids and mix with dough hook.
- Knead dough: Mix or knead until dough is slightly sticky and elastic. For stand mixer, knead for at least 10 minutes to develop gluten.
- Prepare pans: Butter and flour three 9-inch springform pans; line bottoms with parchment paper if desired for easy removal.
- First rise: Let dough double in size in a warm place.
- Shape dough: Turn dough onto floured surface, knead gently, divide into three equal parts. Shape each into a round ball. For bundt-style cakes, create a hole in center of each ball by stretching dough, then place in pans.
- Second rise: Cover dough and let rise 3 to 5 hours until well risen.
- Preheat oven: Set oven to 350°F (175°C).
- Bake: Bake cakes approximately 25 minutes until golden brown and light in weight.
- Cool: Allow cakes to cool in pans about 45 minutes; then carefully remove sides, bottoms, parchment, or any molds.
- Make icing: Stir lemon juice (and water if needed) into confectioner’s sugar until smooth, thick honey consistency is reached. Keep covered until ready to use.
- Ice and decorate: Generously spread icing over each cool cake one at a time, immediately adding sprinkles before the icing sets. Allow icing to fully set before handling or storing cakes.
Notes
- The dough should be slightly sticky but manageable; adjust flour accordingly during mixing.
- Using parchment paper on pan bottoms helps with easy cake removal.
- Rising times may vary depending on room temperature.
- Bundt cake shaping can be improvised with a buttered jar or glass filled with rice if no bundt pan is available.
- Sprinkles add festive color but can be omitted or substituted with nuts if preferred.
- Store iced cakes in an airtight container to maintain freshness.
Keywords: Easter cake, yeast cake, lemon cake, festive dessert, holiday baking, traditional cake, lemon glaze, spring cake