Thursday, July 31, 2014

Celebrate Raspberry Cake Day with @LucyBurdette #recipe



LUCY BURDETTE: Imagine my surprise and pleasure when I learned that July 31 is Raspberry Cake Day! (At least it isn't Moldy Cheese Day--I kid you not, that's on the calendar for October 9. Who thinks these things up?)

Of course you know what came next...I had to make a raspberry cake to share with you. As it turns out we were getting together with friends and I was able to wrestle the dessert assignment away from the other cooks. This recipe turned out so well that I will certainly be using it in the next food critic mystery--I'm thinking Hayley Snow will make it for the man she hopes will become her Valentine. (She's putting a lot of pressure on the cake, but more about that to come later.)




I borrowed this unusual order for putting the cake together from the BACK IN THE DAY BAKERY COOKBOOK, one of my newest acquisitions. The same method is recommended in one of my old favorites, JOY OF COOKING, one of my first cookbooks. If I say so myself, it turned out to be amazing!





Ingredients for the cake

1 and 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 and 3/4 cup cake flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
2 cups sugar
3/4 tsp salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened but still cool
1 cup milk 
4 eggs, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract 

3-4 Tbsp good quality raspberry jam

Ingredients for the icing

1 8 oz block cream cheese
1 stick unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla
confectioner's sugar

2 boxes of fresh raspberries--about 30 for the icing, and 40ish for decoration

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare two 9-inch cake pans by buttering them well, lining with parchment, and then buttering the parchment too.
  
    Mix all the dry cake ingredients in bowl of electric mixer at slow speed. Add cool cubes of butter, a few at a time, and continue beating on low for about 1-2 minutes. Beat the eggs in one at a time, mixing well but minimally after each.

 Mix the milk with the extracts.

    Add 1/2 cup of milk mixture to flour mixture and beat until combined. Add remaining 1/2 cup of milk mixture and beat for about 1 minute.


    Pour batter evenly into the two prepared cake pans.


    Bake until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and cake springs back when touched, in the neighborhood of 25 minutes. (Watch this because you don't want to overcook...)


    Cool the pans  for ten minutes, then remove the cakes, one to a plate and the other to waxed paper, and allow them to cool to room temperature.


Meanwhile, prepare the frosting by beating together the cream cheese and butter, then add vanilla and confectioner's sugar to your taste. (I used about a cup.) Now gradually beat in the raspberries until your desired pink color is achieved.




Spread one of the cooled cakes with a layer of frosting, and then a layer of jam.








Layer on the other cake. Frost top and sides and decorate with remaining berries.








Prepare for your guests to swoon! (SHOULD there be any left over, refrigerate until you are ready to eat it.)





























MURDER WITH GANACHE, the fourth Key West mystery, is in stores now. DEATH WITH ALL THE TRIMMINGS will be out in December.

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24 comments:

  1. You are sending around samples so we can all share in celebrating the day, right? Looks delicious!

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    1. Yes! you have received yours by now Mark, I'll check to see if there's any left...

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  2. My, oh my, oh my! That looks so good.
    You had me at "raspberries"!
    Interesting instructions.
    1-The way the butter is added to the dry ingredients
    2-Putting the jam on top of the icing, rather than the other way around
    I'm with Mark. Waiting for the samples to arrive!

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    1. I was suspicious of the butter later step, Libby, but it was wonderful--and I've made and eaten a lot of cakes! Your sample is on the way...

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    2. By the way, the cake color matches Murder With Ganache really well!

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  3. What a pretty cake! Love how pink it is. And love the cookbook. That's going to go into one of my next Cookbook Nook books. Darling cover! Thanks for sharing!

    Daryl / Avery

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  4. Well, I guess I'll mark my calendar to NOT download any recipes on October 9! Ugh.

    This sounds delicious. Granddaughter and I love raspberries. And I can't wait to see Haley again.

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  5. I'm swooning AND I'm drooling! The cake looks so light and airy and delicious I can almost taste it!

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    1. thanks Peg--I wish I had a piece now! it's so good, it's dangerous to have it in the house though...

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  6. We love raspberries in our house. My in laws had a berry patch in their back yard in Maryland and we all ate them like mad. But when the moved to Florida, our very fresh supply left us. Thankfully, the organic GARDENERS by us still sell them all summer long. This cake looks luscious--and nobody was murdered in the making or eating of this goodie!! Definitely going to try this one !!

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    1. You are twice blessed with raspberries Ronna--so lucky. No one was harmed in the making of this cake--except the berries in the blender:)

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  7. Replies
    1. Thanks Nancy, it was definitely a drooler...trying to come up with an excuse to make it again:)

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  8. Every day should be raspberry cake day, Lucy/Roberta! Thanks for this delicious and entertaining post.

    XO

    MJ

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  9. I love raspberries and this cake sounds amazing. Who knew there was a whole day devoted to it? I have a question about the icing-it says 2 boxes of raspberries. Is that 2 pints?

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    1. That's a very good question! I used two 6 oz containers to make this cake.

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    2. Thanks. I buy them in pints and quarts, or pick them from my garden! ;)

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  10. Oh, wow, this cake will be a beautiful, yummy cake to fix for company (or just me). Thanks for sharing the recipe, Lucy!

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  11. Beautiful, Lucy! Just beautiful!!! And I bet it tasted just as great as it looks. How unusual to beat the butter into the dry ingredients. Huh. Must look into that!

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  12. This cake looks amazing! I have raspberries in my garden but they are late season, and frankly I don't think I can wait that long to try this dessert. So it's off to the farm stand for me. Today. I'll bet it would also be wonderful with blackberries or blueberries (substituting the corresponding jam). Thanks, Lucy!

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    1. I don't think you could go wrong Susannah, though raspberries are pretty special. I have to confess: I can't stop thinking about this cake:) xo

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