Williamsburg Queen's Cake

Recently my husband and I visited Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia. We both agree that it is one of our favorite places on the planet! It is so easy to be swept into the bygone era when our nation was being born by walking the streets, eating the delicious colonial fare and engaging in conversation with the costumed interpreters. If you've ever been there, you're sure to know of the Bake Shop hidden away behind the Raleigh Tavern filled with authentically reproduced cookies, cakes, ham biscuits and other delights. My favorite is the Queen's Cake, which is a modernized version adapted from a colonial recipe found in The Art of Cookery, Made Plain and Easy that was published in 1760. It is a rich pound cake, studded with plump currants and infused with bold citrus flavor that is baked in a loaf pan then served in thin slices. It is heavenly, but extremely too high in carbohydrates for me to have much more than a small bite.

I came home from my trip determined to recreate this moist cake. I'm happy to say this reduced-carb version looks and tastes every bit like the original! I took this dessert to a luncheon and my friends raved. One in particular, who visits Williamsburg regularly, couldn't believe it was anything but the traditional recipe!

If you bake these in small loaf pans and reduce the baking time to about 20-25 minutes, they make wonderful holiday gift cakes when wrapped in silver foil or colorful plastic wrap and tied with a pretty ribbon. Also, feel free to bake it in an 8" x 8" cake pan (reduce the cooking time by 10 minutes) and serve it as a coffee cake. Anyway you bake it, this flavorful cake will be a hit with your family and friends this holiday season.

Low Carb Williamsburg Queen's Cake
(Makes 16 servings)

1 package King Arthur’s Keto Yellow Cake Mix
5 large eggs, room temperature 
½ cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled a bit (1 stick)
3/4 teaspoon pure lemon extract
1 teaspoon pure orange extract

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Zest of 1 lemon
Lemon/milk Mixture: juice of one fresh lemon (strained of pulp and seeds) + enough low carb milk of choice (unsweetened) to equal a total of 1 cup of liquid
½ cup currants, chopped

1. Before you begin, have all ingredients at room temperature. Preheat oven to 375-degrees F. Prepare an 8½" x 4½" loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

2. In a large mixing bowl and using a handheld or standing mixer, whip the eggs until light and increased in volume. Add the melted butter and lemon/milk mixture. Add the extracts, lemon zest and cinnamon. Add the dry mix and whisk until just combined. Fold the currants into the batter and pour into prepared pan.

3. Bake in preheated oven for 55-65 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the internal temperature reaches between 200-206 degrees. Test at 50 minutes and bake longer if additional time is needed. (Do not overbake to avoid drying out, but make sure the internal temperature is at least 200 degrees.) If the cake gets too dark, place a piece of foil over the top of the loaf the last 10-15 minutes of baking.

4. Remove from oven to a wire rack. Allow bread to cool in pan for 15 minutes, then remove from pan and continue to cool on wire rack for another hour. This bread can be left at room temperature for 1 day or overnight, or wrap well and store in refrigerator.

Nutritional Information per serving (½" slice): 118 calories, 10.9 g carbohydrate (6.4 g dietary fiber, 4.3 g sugars), 8.5 g total fat (5 g saturated fat, 0 g trans fat), 76 mg cholesterol, 162 mg sodium, 51 mg calcium, 124 mg potassium, 1 mg iron, 87 IU Vit A, 2 mg Vit C, 3.4 g protein. Net carbs per serving: 4.5 grams

Original recipe by Kathy Sheehan, copyright 2009, revised 2024

All rights reserved. Please do not duplicate without the author’s permission.

How does this compare to the version adapted from the Colonial recipe? Traditional Queen's Cake calls for 2 sticks of butter, 1 cup of sugar, 5 eggs, 2 cups of flour and 2 cups currants! This results is a very high carb, high saturated fat dessert. My low carb version is just as delicious with just a fraction of the carbs!