Raspberry Bakewell Cake

My take on a British classic. Make it and pretend you're on the Great British Bake-Off

Today’s my birthday, which, of course means cake. Oddly tho, the recipe for cake today has no chocolate anywhere near it, which will have those who know me wondering if I’ve been replaced by an alien lizard-person.

I reassure you I have not.

But then again, wouldn’t I tell you that if I were an alien lizard-human?

Today’s cake is a riff on the classic British bakewell tart. It is a tender almond-scented cake, with a lush seam of raspberry jam and fresh raspberries tucked inside. Finished with a lemon glaze and a thin flakes of almond strewn about on top, it makes a lovely light dessert for a fancy dinner, or you can do like we do and slowly trim slices off it all day long, any time we walk past it.

The photos don’t do the thing justice. But I feel that way about photos of myself, too!

To be honest, there will be a chocolatey dessert for dinner tonight. And last night I made a key lime pie and slathered fresh whipped cream on top. Here are a few alternative birthday treats, to prove I am still me:

• A Chocolatey Chocolate Mousse Cake

• Bosco insisted I include this dog birthday cake that I made with the wonderful Dave Aronberg.

• Banana Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Cake for the peanut butter cup fans in your life.

• And this, the VERY best chocolate cake. It’s a sheet cake, so if you’re stuck making your own cake, choose this one.

I think about this ad from my childhood the older I get. Does anyone else remember it? It really feels trapped in time, and makes me laugh.

(I’d like to note that my writing has been interrupted three times, by three different, wonderful people. My brother Paul flew in from Brazil this morning (!) and drove over to bring me, yes, a lot of Brazilian chocolate, which complimented the chocolate another lovely human surprised me with. And speaking of Brazil, my amazing, brilliant neighbor came with her amazing, adorable, brilliant daughter and brought me an entire pan of pao de queijo, the gooey, cheesy traditional cheese rolls from Brazil. (I am hopeful Mariana will share the recipe with us?!)

In my house, on this rainy day, I’ve a tray of these warm, gooey little breads. I’m so lucky.

I’d send you all chocolates and pao de queijo if I could, but in the meantime, I offer you this, one of my favorite cake recipes.

Clyde and cake

Raspberry Bakewell Cake: Printable

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Raspberry Bakewell Cake

Yield: 1 9” cake

What You’ll Need:

For the cake:

1 9” springform pan

1 1/2 cups (140 grams) almond flour

1/2 cup (140 grams) butter, softened and cut into 16 pieces

3/4 cup (140 grams) granulated sugar

1 1/4 cups (140 grams) all purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

For the filling:

1 cup fresh or frozen (don’t defrost) raspberries

3/4 cup seedless raspberry jam

For the topping:

1/3 cup flaked almonds

For the lemon glaze:

1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar

2 tablespoons fresh squeezed lemon juice

What You’ll Do:

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Grease the 9” springform pan.

2. Place all the cake ingredients (which you’ll note almost all measure the same amount in grams!), from almond flour to almond extract in the bowl of a stand mixer. Start the mixer on low and slowly raise the speed to medium high. Blend until the mixture is uniform. You don’t want to see big chunks of butter; be sure to stop and scrape the bowl once or twice.

3. Spread three-quarters of the cake batter into the pan. Spread the jam on top as evenly as possible and sprinkle the raspberries over the jam. Now comes the only sort of challenging part: Dollop the remaining batter evenly over the jam mixture and then spread it evenly as possible with the back of a spoon or a small offset spatula. Then, when that begin to frustrate you, just wet your fingers and just smush it into place. Sprinkle the flaked almonds on top. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean, save for a smear of raspberry jam.

4. Let cool for 10 minutes, then release and remove the outer ring of the springform pan. When the cake is completely cool, mix together the confectioners’ sugar and the lemon to form a thin glaze. Drizzle over the cake. Enjoy!

What do you eat on your birthday? Is there a must-have? Do you still keep up some childhood birthday traditions (birthday cake for breakfast?). I bet you all know what I really want for my birthday, right? Hint: It’s orange and wears handcuffs.

The cake before the second layer of batter is spread on top.