Brown Sugar Birthday Cake with Blackberries

It was my birthday this week. I say this not to extract gifts (which will of course be accepted graciously), but because I started trying to think of acceptable birthday cake contenders several weeks in advance. And I just didn’t have many. Traditionally, I’ve been a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting kind of girl. However, my tastes have expanded to more exotic flavors (which my husband is forced to eat on my birthday), and sadly the temperature on my birthday was a balmy 87 degrees. Not really the time for chocolateyness. So I decided to do something with fruit in it, and looked around until I found this recipe. I decided it counted.

Do not mistake me - this is not a fruity cake. This is the sweetest cake (and I mean that is the sucrose sense of the word) you will ever eat. It improved after a few days, so I might suggest making the cake two days in advance, then assembling and frosting day-of. It tastes not unlike a chocolate chip cookie that a) has no chocolate and b) was made into a cake. I liked it, as did my co-workers, though my husband (not a brown sugar fan) was less thrilled. Next time, I’d take out some of the sugar and add more berries to cut the sweetness, both changes reflected below. If you worry about sweetness, cut down the amount of frosting, too - I am incapable of skimping on frosting. The cake was BEAUTIFUL, a fun way to feature summer berries without pink frosting or shortcakes, and a way to indulge my deep and abiding love of brown sugar. I’m sure I’ll be messing with it in the future, but in the meantime, give this a try and let me know what you think! I’ll be here, singing “Happy Birthday” to myself. :)

Brown Sugar Birthday Cake with Blackberries
Gourmet Magazine, September 2006

Ingredients
Cake:
2/3 cup walnuts (2 oz)
½ -1 cup granulated sugar, divided
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 cup well-shaken buttermilk
1 teaspoon finely grated fresh orange zest
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large egg

Frosting:
1 cup brown sugar
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar or more (thicken to taste)

Berries:
4 small clamshells blackberries
½ cup blackberry jam

Directions
To Make Cakes:

Put oven racks the middle of the oven and preheat oven to 350°F.

In the food processor, pulse walnuts and ½ cup white sugar until finely ground. Do not, however, let it become walnut butter.


Grease 2 cake pans (8-9” each) and put a rounded ⅓ cup of the walnut mixture into the bottom. Use it to “flour” the pan, tilting it to cover the bottom and sides. Shake slightly to spread excess evenly along the bottom. Reserve any addition mixture.


In one medium bowl, sift together flour and baking soda.

In a slightly smaller bowl, zest an orange and juice it. Add buttermilk and vanilla.


In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream butter, brown sugar, and additional ½ cup granulated sugar (I may omit this - the cake is plenty sweet already). It should be pale brown and slightly fluffy, not unlike the first stage of chocolate chip cookie making.

Add eggs, beating well after each addition.

On slow speed, add some flour mixture, then some liquid mixture, alternating 3-4 times before ending with flour.


When batter is smooth (it will be thick), spoon into cake pans evenly. Do not upset the walnut mixture more than necessary.

Bake until skewer comes out clean, about 30 minutes. It is worth switching pan positions halfway through, mine rose unevenly (they can be matched up to make an even cake, don’t worry!).

Cool in pans on racks 15 minutes. Invert racks over pans, then flip cakes onto racks to cool completely, about 1 hour. Wash berries and leave on paper towels to dry completely while cake cools.


Cake layers can be baked 2 days ahead and kept, wrapped in plastic, at room temperature.

To Make Frosting:

Cream cream cheese and brown sugar in stand mixer. Add powdered sugar until frosting is the desired consistency.

To Assemble Cake:
Place one layer, walnut side up, on the platter of your choice. Feel free to use that trick where scraps of max paper are placed beneath and then pulled out post-frosting...I was too lazy.

Microwave jam for 10 seconds, then spread in a thins layer on cake. Carefully place half of the blackberries on top, using the smallest berries. If all berries are on the large side, gather up half in a bowl and smash slightly with a fork, then spread the crushed berries on the cake. Leave 1 inch along the edges.


Line up the other half of the cake and place atop the berries, walnut side down (note: if your cakes rose unevenly, simply line the high side of one layer up with the low side of another layer. Presto!). Press down slightly to ensure berries are firmly sealed in.

Frost top of cake first, then sides (fun yet messy). If you have remaining walnut mixture, press gently into sides of cake. Arrange remaining blackberries attractively on top, and then go impress people.