Raspberry Buttermilk Cake

Well, hello! Are you surprised to see that I'm still blogging? I know, I know, I've been very silent for the last-- let's see-- six weeks! Yikes! That's a record for me! I'm halfway through my five-week summer break, and I am making the best of it-- and I am loving it!

We'll be traveling to Bavaria, Austria and Switzerland in October. So, this summer, we're working on giving out master bedroom a facelift. My husband still works, but I'm spending my free time doing some much needed deep cleaning and de-cluttering.  It's almost finished, but it's been very time-consuming. Also, I haven't been working on savory recipes as much. Instead,  I've been using Blue Apron to ship ingredients and recipes to make sure that Craig and I are eating healthy and delicious meals.  I'll talk more about Blue Apron, at a later time.  I will say that having three meals, a week, that are quick, flavorful and easy to make has been a blessing.

 

For the last few years, the Salinas Valley has been dedicating a lot more acreage to growing these beautiful Driscoll berries.  There was an irresistible sale, so I snatched two pints with all kinds of ideas on how to make them. At first, I thought I'd bake and update new photos for this Raspberry Lemon Shortbread Tart.   But, then, I remembered that it has been a while since I've baked this super easy Raspberry Buttermilk Cake-- only I used our home grown Olallieberries.

I don't know why, but that particular blog post has disappeared! Strange! This cake is so simple to make, that I decided it was time to create a new post and share it with all of you.


This cake is easily made in one cake pan.  The only ingredient you might not have on hand is buttermilk.  You can try the milk and lemon juice or white vinegar trick, but I can't guarantee that you would get the same results as using real buttermilk. I do keep buttermilk in my fridge. I love using buttermilk to soak fried chicken, in buttermilk pancakes and find that buttermilk gives cakes and baked goods a lot of moisture. This recipe is no exception!

The rest of the ingredients are basic (a printable recipe card is at the bottom of this post).  1/2 stick unsalted butter, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, vanilla, lemon zest, flour (of course).  The dough is sublime. I'm one of those folks who dismisses warnings about eating raw dough (like licking the spatula). I've been doing it all my life, as has my husband, and have lived to tell the tale.

You don't have to stick to raspberries, by the way. With all the beautiful summer berries that are available, use whatever you like.  Once you add the berries, sprinkle some sugar all over-- this will give a beautiful crunch to the cake. Bake at 375F for 20-25 minutes (mine passed the toothpick test in 18 minutes).  Allow to cool for 10 minutes, in the pan, then remove and allow to cool completely on a baking rack.

The next time I make this cake, I will double the amount of raspberries from the original recipe. Dust the cake with powdered sugar.  I also made some fresh whipped cream to go with it.

This cake is so moist!  It took 15 minutes to make the batter.  This is perfect when you have unexpected company or you want a simple cake to showcase summer berries.

TASTING NOTES:  I will always wonder how my original blog post, from 2009, disappeared.  I'm glad that I have recreated this cake for you, because it's fool-proof.  It's tender and has just the right balance of sweet.  The whipped cream is an extra treat. This cake is perfect with a cup of tea, or with coffee.  I plan to try this with fresh peaches or apricots, as well.  I hope you try it and enjoy it as much as we do.

My next recipe that I plan to share with you is this delicious Jerk Chicken that we grilled.  I'm taking a break from Blue Apron for a few weeks, and I plan to try out a few new recipes that I've been anxious to try.  I'm back-- maybe once or twice a week, but I'm back!

Hugs,

 

Here's the printable recipe card: