This is a riff on the Meyer Lemon-Hibiscus Cupcakes that I made for Undine's birthday last week. This time, I added in candied lemon peel and candied hibiscus flowers and made it into a loaf instead of cupcakes. And instead of an ermine frosting, I made a hibiscus glaze to drizzle on the top.
Ingredients
Hibiscus Tisane
1 cup boiling water
3 Tablespoons dried hibiscus petals
Cupcakes
1/4 cup Butter olive oil
3/4 cup organic granulated sugar
4 large eggs, separated
1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup hibiscus tisane
1-3/4 cup flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons chopped candied hibiscus
1-1/2 Tablespoons chopped candied lemon peel
Also needed loaf pan
Hibiscus Glaze
3 Tablespoons hibiscus tisane
1 cup organic powdered sugar
pinch of salt
Procedure
Hibiscus Tisane
Place the petals in a jar or mixing bowl. Pour the boiling water of the petals and let stand until the water is cooled. Strain out the petals and set aside.
Bread
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a large mixing bowl, add in the oil, sugar, egg yolks, lemon juice, buttermilk, and hibiscus tisane.
In another mixing bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, and salt. Sift the dry ingredients into the batter and fold in gently with a spatula until just moistened.
In another mixing bowl, beat the egg whites until medium peaks form. Fold the egg whites into the batter, taking care not to deflate the egg whites too much. Fold in the candied hibiscus and lemon peel.
Spoon batter into the loaf pan. Place in the oven and bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool completely on wire racks before glazing.
Glaze
Whisk all of the ingredients together until smooth. With a spoon, drizzle glaze over the top of the cooled bread. The glaze will harden a bit after sitting.
This - along with the Espresso Banana Bread and Matcha Blueberry Bread - will be en route tomorrow as soon as I can get to the post office. Thankfully he lives close enough that it gets there overnight without me having to pay overnight prices!