Come early August, there’s a brief window when the blueberries are still plentiful and inexpensive and the local peaches are ripe and luscious.
Last summer, there was no getting enough of this country-rustic cake. The peach man at the farmers market took notice, grinning each time I stopped by for another lug.
Cantaloupe, honeydew, grapes, cherries and apricots are one thing. But peaches are heaven you can hold in your hand.
So hurry, don’t let this year’s peach and blueberry window close without trying this delicious cake. Along with the peach man, your family will soon be grinning.
BROWN SUGAR PEACHES For a simple summer dessert, mix two tablespoons of brown sugar with a tablespoon of lemon juice. Gently stir in a pound of perfectly ripe sliced peaches, let macerate for about two hours, stirring occasionally. Serve with cream whipped with a bit of almond extract or cinnamon.
Pan color makes a difference! If your springform pan is light in color, bake this cake at 375F, if it’s dark, at 350F. The accepted wisdom among expert bakers is to reduce baking temperature by 25 degrees whenever using a dark pan. It’s not a typo, this cake does indeed bake for nearly two hours. Be sure to cover with foil so the top doesn’t burn. Not to worry, the fruit filling will firm up as the cake cools. For a mid-winter taste of summer, make this with frozen peaches and blueberries.
PEACH BLUEBERRY CAKE
Oven time: 1¾ hours
Serves 10
-
CAKE
- 1-1/2 cups flour
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 stick unsalted butter, diced
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 pounds perfectly ripe peaches, peels on, pitted and chopped
- 1 cup blueberries
- Zest from 1 lemon
- Juice from ½ lemon (about 1 tablespoon)
FRUIT TOPPING
CAKE Briefly pulse the dry ingredients (see ALANNA’s TIPS) in a food processor. Add the butter and pulse until mixture becomes a coarse meal with some pea-sized lumps of butter. Add egg and vanilla, pulse just until dough forms a ball. With floured hands, press dough, sides first, into a 9-inch springform pan. Refrigerate while mixing the fruit topping.
FRUIT TOPPING Preheat oven to 375F or 350F (see TIPS). Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl, then stir in the fruit, zest and lemon juice.
Spoon fruit topping evenly onto the crust, cover loosely with foil. Bake until filling is bubbly and the crust golden, about 1-3/4 hours. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.
Sugar | In 2008, I accidentally omitted the sugar in the fruit. But it's still plenty sweet and perhaps better if serving, say, for a morning bread, instead of a dessert. Greasing the pan | To be careful, do grease the pan. I've had no trouble removing the cake from my springform pan, but others have. More Recipes for Fruity Desserts
Never miss a Kitchen Parade recipe: Sign up for a free e-mail subscription.
If you like Kitchen Parade, forward this recipe to a friend who might too!
© Copyright 2006 Kitchen Parade
Page Permalink
|
E-Mail this Recipe
Your Comments:
This is a fantastic recipe, Alanna!
The problem with this cake??... I think the cooking time is way too long. And I paid great attention to the length of time it called for, thinking at first that it was a typo. But then I read and reread the tips and it said that no, the cooking time was in fact close to 2hrs. I didn't want to disturb it too early in the cooking time, but geesh, there was no fear of that! I think an hour would have been plenty of time.
The filling has great potential. It's the perfect amount of blueberries in proportion to the peaches. Some recipes have too many blueberries and you can hardly tell the peach is even there. However, I think a shorter cooking time would have left the fruit with a brighter taste and appearance.
I ended up scraping the fruit off it and eating it so I wouldn't feel so bad about wasting the rest of it. What a bummer :( I'm scared to try this recipe again...
Please be assured that this recipe has been tested not just once but many times, including as recently as a month ago here in my own kitchen (plus the commenters, plus at least three of my own friends that made/loved the cake).
The baking time IS a long time, but even then, it's always good to watch timing carefully the first time a new recipe is used. I suspect the difference in our results is either in the oven temperature, the pan, what was used to grease the pan, who knows what else? Perhaps even the sweetness of the fruit.
I guess it goes to show that cooking is as much art as science. Still, it does nothing to change your disappointment, for this I am truly sorry.