Last week, my coworker graciously bought me a Grapefruit Ginger Tea with Honey while I was getting over my cold and it was magic. The tea inspired me to put a little twist on Mario Batali's Grapefruit and Honey Cake and Martha Stewart's Grapefruit Curd. For Mario Batali's cake, I substituted butter for olive oil (because I love butter) and opted for gingersnap crumbs instead of bread crumbs. As for Martha Stewart's Grapefruit Curd, I added honey for a bit of extra sweetness. But enough explanation—here are the directions:

GRAPEFRUIT HONEY CAKE
(adapted from Mario Batali's Grapefruit & Honey Cake)

Grapefruit Honey Cake Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons plus 1/4 cup finely ground Gingersnap Cookies
• 2 medium Grapefruits
• 1/3 cup Butter at room temperature
• 4 large Eggs at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1/2 cup Sugar
• 1/4 cup Honey
• 1 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
• 2 teaspoons Baking Powder

 

Grapefruit Honey Cake Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°.
2. Grease a 9-inch pan and dust it with 3 tablespoons of ground gingersnap cookies.
3. Using a grater, zest both grapefruits.
4. Cream the butter in a mixer and add the grapefruit zest. Set aside.
5. Juice one of the grapefruits to yield 3/4 cup juice. Set aside.
6. In a large bowl, beat the eggs and salt with an electric mixer until frothy and light. Add the creamed butter. Slowly beat in the sugar and honey, and continue to mix until pale and thick, about 2 minutes more.
7. In a separate bowl, sift the flour, the remaining 1/4 cup breadcrumbs, and the baking powder together. Then gradually beat the dry ingredients into the egg mixture. Fold in the citrus zest mixture until just incorporated.
8. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Note: Poke your cake with a cake tester or toothpick ten minutes before bake time is over to check results.  Let the cake cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Then remove it from the pan and let it cool to room temperature.

 

GRAPEFRUIT HONEY CURD
(adapted from Martha Stewart's Grapefruit Curd)

Curd Ingredients

• 1 cup fresh Ruby Red grapefruit juice (from 2 grapefruits), plus 3 tablespoons finely grated Ruby Red grapefruit zest
• 3 large eggs plus 3 large egg yolks
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 4 tablespoons sugar
• Coarse salt
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and softened

 

Curd Directions

1. Bring grapefruit juice to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until juice is reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Let cool.

2. Whisk together eggs, yolks, sugar, grapefruit juice, grapefruit zest, honey, and a pinch of salt in a double boiler or a heatproof bowl set over (not in) a pot of simmering water. Cook, whisking constantly, until thickened, 6 to 7 minutes. Remove from heat, and whisk in butter, a few pieces at a time.

3. Pour mixture through a fine sieve into a bowl set in a larger bowl filled with ice water, and stir until cool. Cover surface of curd with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until cold, at least 4 hours and up to 2 days.

 

Enjoy!