Now that you’ve made your clabber, I thought I’d share a few recipes for things to make with it. Let’s start with Scandinavian Spiced Milk Cake.

Milk cake, or mjölkkaka, is a simple Swedish cake made with clabber. My version uses spices common in Scandinavian baking to warm it up a bit, and tops the cake with slivered almonds and Swedish pearl sugar for crunch. I used a portion of barley flour, but you can certainly use all AP flour, which will yield a cake with a finer texture. Try some for you next Fika – it goes great with a cup of coffee and some conversation.

And don’t worry if you don’t have a clabber culture going, yet. You can use buttermilk, yogurt, or any other cultured milk product that has an acid profile. If you opt to use sour cream, thin it with a little bit of milk so that you get a nice, smooth batter.

Close up of Scandinavian spiced milk cake

Ingredients

1 c Clabbered milk, lightly whisked Substitute plain yogurt
113 g unsalted butter ½ c / one stick
150 g sugar ¾ c
2 eggs
1 tsp almond extract
120 g AP flour 1 c
60 g barley flour 1/2 c
1½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp cinnamon
⅛ tsp cardamom
⅛ tsp ginger
¼ tsp kosher salt
¼ c slivered almonds for topping
2 Tbsp Swedish Pearl Sugar for topping

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour an 8" round pan. I recommend also using a parchment paper round in the bottom of the pan
In a medium sized bowl, cream together butter and sugar until well combined and fluffy
Add eggs, one at a time, creaming well after each addition. Then add the clabber milk, in 2-3 additions, beating on low until combined. Scrape down sides of bowl, add almond extract, and beat again. Set aside
In another medium bowl, sift together both flours, baking soda, powder, salt, and spices. Blend with a whisk. Add dry ingredients to milk mixture and stir until combined. Do not overbeat.
Pour batter into prepared pan. Spread to edges of pan with a spatula. Sprinkle almonds and Swedish pearl sugar on top. Bake 30-35 minutes or until top springs back lightly when touched and wooden skewer inserted into center comes out clean.
Cool cake in pan for 10 minutes, then invert onto a plate. Cook upside down for an additional 5 minutes, then flip again onto serving dish.

Notes

This recipe is somewhere between a cake and a quick bread. That means it’s important not to overmix the batter, or it will get tough. Mix just until all the flour lumps are smoothed out.

If you don’t have clabbered milk, substitute plain yogurt or buttermilk. Don’t use regular milk – the recipe needs acid to rise and make a light cake.

If you make this cake, let me know how it turned out! And don’t be afraid to riff on the flavor profile. You could add some blueberries and lemon zest, and omit the almonds. Or maybe make it cherry vanilla – literally. The basic milk cake is good by itself, but is also something of a blank canvas. Be creative!