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Blue Ribbon Bundt Cake from the L.A. County Fair

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Photos by Shane Redsar
Photos by Shane Redsar

Los Angeles playwright Eva Anderson is a food lover by birth: her great-grandfather was Lew Pollack, the Hollywood songwriter who spent a good chunk of the 1930s making the scene at the Brown Derby.

For the past few years Eva has been indulging her hereditary love of the local food scene by entering baked goods into competition at the L.A. County Fair. For the first couple of summers she tried experimenting with outlandish recipes and ingredients, before realizing that perfectly-executed but traditional treats were they way to go -- and her hunch was correct. This summer she was awarded first place in bundt cakes.

Her recipe, adapted from one she found online, uses Meyer lemons for a rounder flavor, and a double dose of vanilla (a trick she learned from a catering chef). It is perfection, and we're so lucky she's sharing it here. Enjoy!

Meyer Lemon Bundt Cake

Cake:
2 Meyer lemons, zested and juiced
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
¾ cup buttermilk
3 eggs
1 egg yolk
2 ¼ sticks butter
2 cups sugar

Glaze:
3 tablespoons Meyer lemon juice
1 tablespoon buttermilk
2 cups confectioner's sugar

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Grease and flour 12-cup Bundt pan. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Combine zest and juice in a bowl and set aside 10 minutes.

Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt in bowl. Combine juice/zest, vanilla, buttermilk in another bowl. Combine eggs and yolk in small bowl.

Cream butter and sugar in large bowl. Add eggs and mix until combined. Add 1/3 of flour mixture, mix, then add 1/3 of buttermilk mixture. Repeat until all ingredients are combined.

Scrape into prepared pan and bake until top is golden brown and skewer inserted into cake comes out clean (45-50 minutes).

For glaze, whisk lemon juice, buttermilk, and sugar together until smooth. Poor ½ of glaze over hot cake. Let cool one hour. Pour remaining glaze over cake.

Cut into slices and serve!

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