Southern Dessert Recipe: Hummingbird Loaf Cake
As fully loaded a cake as they come, spiced rum included
Brian Hart Hoffman is back with volume three of the popular Bake from Scratch cookbooks, and among the 400-plus pages lies this packed gem of a cake. The Southern-inspired loaf has it all: diced dried fruit for pockets of extra sweetness, cream cheese for tenderness, oat streusel for crunch and rum for, well, rum's sake.
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Recipe from Bake from Scratch Vol. 3, by Brian Hart Hoffman
Hummingbird Loaf
Get the recipe for this Southern-inspired hummingbird loaf cake, which has spiced rum, pecan-oat streusel, dried fruit and a sweet vanilla glaze.
Prep Time
30
minutes
Cook Time
1.5
hours
servings
9
loaf
Total time: 2 hours
Ingredients
- For the Pecan-Oat Streusel
- ¼ cup chopped pecans
- ¼ cup old-fashioned oats
- ¼ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cubed
- For the Cake
- 1 cup spiced rum
- ½ cup diced dried pineapple pieces
- ½ cup diced dried apricots
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¾ cup mashed banana
- ½ cup chopped pecans
- Pecan-oat streusel
- Vanilla glaze (recipe follows)
- For the Vanilla Glaze
- 2 cups confectioners' sugar
- 3 tablespoons whole milk, room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Directions
- Make the streusel: In a small bowl, whisk together pecans, oats, brown sugar, flour, salt, and nutmeg. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until pea-size crumbs remain. Squeeze mixture into small and large clumps. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Make the cake: In a small saucepan, bring rum, pineapple, and apricots to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to low, and simmer until fruit is plump and liquid has evaporated, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat, and let cool completely.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour a 9x5-inch loaf pan. Line pan with parchment paper, letting excess extend over sides of pan.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat cream cheese and butter at medium speed until creamy. Add sugar, and beat until fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, stopping to scrape sides of bowl. Add egg, beating well. Beat in vanilla.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, salt, baking powder, baking soda, and nutmeg. With mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture to cream cheese mixture, beating until combined. Fold in rehydrated fruit, mashed banana, and pecans. Spoon batter into prepared pan. Top with the streusel.
- Bake until golden brown and a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes, covering with foil halfway through baking to prevent excess browning.
- Meanwhile, make the glaze: In a small bowl, whisk together all ingredients until smooth.
- When the cake is done, let cool in pan for 10 minutes. Using excess parchment as handles, remove from pan, and let cool completely on a wire rack. Drizzle glaze over cooled loaf. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
Nutrition
| Calories per Serving | 620 |
| Total Fat | 22.7 g |
| Saturated Fat | 10.1 g |
| Trans Fat | 0.4 g |
| Cholesterol | 63.3 mg |
| Total Carbohydrates | 87.4 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 3.1 g |
| Total Sugars | 62.5 g |
| Sodium | 326.0 mg |
| Protein | 5.9 g |
The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
