Buddha’s Hand Citron Cake
11 Jan 2012
Eric and I bought this gorgeous Buddha’s hand citron at Berkeley Bowl in December, and for a week or so it perfumed our apartment with loveliness: a deep lemon scent with a hint of vanilla. (And before that, it perfumed our suitcases, much to the confusion of the TSA, who eyed it, and our bags full of bulk spices, with suspicion). I was determined to bake it into some kind of delicious cake, and am I happy to report that I succeeded!
I’ve seen these spectacular fruits for years and was always impressed by their gnarled little fingers. And those little fingers pack such a powerful citrus punch that I think from now on I will be buying one every year! I wanted to get as much of that flavor as I could into the cake, and so I planned to use not fine zest, but rather long peels of the skin from the fingers. Accordingly, I got out my vegetable peeler instead of my grater, but I soon found that the best tool was a paring knife: it let me cut long strips of fruit with no trouble. You can actually eat the Buddha’s hand whole–there is no segmented fruit inside, but just lots of the white flesh that makes up the pith of a typical citrus fruit. That white part isn’t terribly flavorful on its own, but together with the zest, it’s pretty zippy. That was a very long way of telling you that I wasn’t too worried about some of the white flesh making it into the cake. I am the opposite of succinct, am I not?
I wanted to keep this cake really simple, to let the flavor of the Buddha’s hand shine through. I didn’t add any lemon juice or vanilla, and I hoped it would turn out sufficiently lemony. And oh yes indeed, it did.
I loved that the chunks of fruit I had cut were thick enough to sink your teeth into. And the cake had a lovely fragrance and so much citrus flavor you would’ve thought I poured several cups of lemon juice into the batter. Buddha’s hand for the win, or, as my dissertation adviser used to say: “Economy of effort.”
Now that the cake is gone, I am wishing I’d bought several of these big guys. They would have been so fantastic in scones, or maybe even in madeleines. And, I should report as well that when I was researching Buddha’s hand and looking for ideas, several sources informed me that it is common in some parts of the world to keep this fruit in the kitchen, just to perfume the house. To this I have two words in response: Good. Idea.
In any case, you can probably expect to see the triumphant return of the Buddha’s hand citron to this blog sometime soon!
Buddha’s Hand Citron Cake
1 c butter
2 c sugar
1 tsp salt
4 eggs
2 tsp baking powder
3 c flour
1 c milk
1 c strips of zest and fruit from Buddha’s hand citron
-Preheat the oven to 350F and butter the inside of a large Bundt pan.
-Cream together the butter and sugar, and then add the salt. Mix in the eggs, one at a time, and then the baking powder.
-Mix in half of the flour, followed by the milk and the other half of the flour. Finally, stir in the fruit.
-Pour the batter into pan and bake for 55-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool for at least 30 minutes before removing from the pan. Enjoy!

Jan 11, 2012 @ 21:58:57
I had never heard of this glorious fruit before. Now that I have, however, I may just have to stroll over to Berkeley Bowl and let it work its magic here, too! 🙂
Jan 12, 2012 @ 09:40:30
Yes, it is glorious! I highly recommend it!
Jan 21, 2012 @ 12:52:00
Oh! Whew! When I first saw the Buddha’s hand I thought you had somehow baked a cake in that shape! And that would be so weird!
Jan 22, 2012 @ 15:31:39
That would require very special talent!
Nov 25, 2013 @ 15:15:09
I sell buddah hands they r so cute and funny looking
Dec 05, 2013 @ 17:01:41
And they smell so good!
Nov 25, 2013 @ 15:16:12
Ima try to make that cake 🙂
Dec 05, 2013 @ 17:01:51
Hope you enjoy it!
Dec 28, 2015 @ 09:48:20
I saw this incredible fruit? for the first time over Christmas 2015 at Fresh Market here in Florida. Took a picture and none of my friends had ever heard of it or seen one. One thing the web is good for is satiating our curiosity about things. Thanks for the recipe.
Jan 21, 2016 @ 10:18:12
It’s so fun to find new things, isn’t it?! I’m so glad you properly enjoyed his truly weird-looking fruit. Thank you for commenting!
Dec 28, 2016 @ 21:08:31
Great cake recipe! I have a tree in my backyard and I made this cake for family and friends for holiday baked goods this year. Everyone wants another cake! Thank you again for the recipe.
Jan 04, 2017 @ 21:52:39
How lovely! I can’t imagine having such a glorious tree in my backyard!
Jan 28, 2019 @ 18:59:47
Thank you for this wonderful cake recipe! We all loved it. We have a tree in our yard and this was the perfect way to use the fruit!