The Fruit-Topped Cake
I should just call this a coffee cake, but I want you to know the origin, so I’m calling it a kuchen, inspired by the wonderful yeasted cakes in Luisa Weiss’s Classic German Baking. I’m not much of a fancy cake person, but I am very fond of a casual cake: a not-so-sweet-or-pristine pastry that is as well suited to breakfast or a 4 o’clock snack as it is to a full-on dessert.
Why is a cake like this in a book like this? Well, maybe you have more disciplined produce-buying habits than me, but when fruit is bursting into the summer markets, I tend to overbuy. You get apricots, early peaches, plums, and raspberries all at once, and soon enough you are overstocked. And so, before those fruits go bad, I like to push some of them into the freezer. A few handfuls at a time, and then next thing you know, you’ve got the makings for a sauce or a smoothie or a casual cake like this.
Extra ingredient: mixed berries
Time: 2 hours 15 minutes (20 minutes active)
Makes 8 to 10 servings
TOPPING
¾ cup rolled oats
½ cup oat flour
⅓ cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
8 tablespoons (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
CAKE BASE
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled, plus more unmelted butter for greasing the pan
¾ cup all-purpose flour, plus extra for flouring the pan
2 teaspoons (about 1 packet) active dry yeast, preferably fast-acting
3 tablespoons granulated sugar, plus an extra pinch
½ cup whole milk
¾ cup oat flour
½ teaspoon salt, plus an extra pinch
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon grated orange zest (or 1 more teaspoon lemon zest)
¼ teaspoon almond extract
1 pound (about 3½ cups) mixed berries: blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, and huckleberries
Whipped cream, optional, to serve
1. To make the topping, in a food processor, combine the rolled oats, oat flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, cold butter, and salt. Pulse to evenly distribute the butter, but not so much as to chop up all the oats. Chill in the freezer until ready to use. (Make-ahead note: The topping can be made and kept in the freezer for up to 2 weeks before baking.)
2. To make the cake, butter and flour a 9-inch springform pan and set aside.
3. In a small bowl, whisk the yeast and sugar. Warm ¼ cup of the milk to about 100°F (a drop should feel comfortably body temperature on the inside of your wrist). Stir the milk into the yeast mixture and let it sit for 10 minutes: the mixture should be bubbly before proceeding.
4. In a large bowl, whisk the flours and the salt. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.
5. In a small bowl, whisk the remaining ¼ cup milk, the egg yolk, melted butter, lemon and orange zests, and almond extract, then whisk in the yeast mixture. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Stir well with a wooden spoon to incorporate all the dry ingredients.
6. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until the mixture comes together in a smooth springy ball, about 30 seconds. There may be some bumps on the otherwise smooth surface from the lemon zest. Place in the prepared pan, cover with a tea towel, and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour.
7. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
8. Meanwhile, place the berries in a nonreactive skillet with a pinch each of salt and sugar, and cook over medium-high heat until they first release juices and then the juices reduce to about 2 or 3 tablespoons, about 5 minutes. Let cool. (Make-ahead note: The berries can be cooked a day ahead of time.)
9. This is not one of those double-in-volume doughs, but it will be easier to poke and manipulate after the rise. Use a pouncing finger motion to spread the dough across the surface of the pan and about ½ inch up the sides. Spread the berry mixture across the top of the dough, leaving a ½-inch border around the perimeter. Sprinkle the chilled streusel mixture across the entire cake.
10. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until the streusel is browned and a few berry juices bubble up on the sides of the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature, with whipped cream, if desired.
VARIATIONS
- Play with the berries. Any berries will work well, though don’t use too many strawberries; their texture won’t be as lovely as smaller berries.
- Play with other fruits. Slim wedges of stone fruit, such as peaches, plums, or nectarines, will work well here. They won’t need to be dried out on the stovetop in the same way as the berries.
- Play with the flours. If you can’t find oat flour, swap in other whole-grain flours such as fine cornmeal or whole wheat flour, or you can use all white flour, but you will lose some nutty flavor.
- Skip the cake and make a crumble. If you don’t have time for the cake, make a little slurry out of 2 teaspoons cornstarch and 2 tablespoons lemon juice. Mix it with 2 pounds of berries (or berries mixed with other fruit) and ¼ cup or more of sugar, and pack into a pie dish with the streusel topping on top. Bake at 350°F until the streusel is brown and the fruit juices have thickened. Serve warm.
THINGS TO DO WITH THE LAST BIT OF JAM IN YOUR JAR
I am a collector of jams, both because I have friends who like to make it, and because it’s one of my favorite food souvenirs to enjoy after a trip. But often I get curious about a new jar before I have quite finished the last and then end up with too many open. Here’s a quick list of things to do with the last bit of jam, besides the completely reasonable PB&J or buttery toast.
On top of French toast, pancakes, or crepes, or stirred in with the berries in this cake.
On top of plain yogurt, with toasted nuts or seeds.
Swirled into a pan with chicken stock after roasting a bit of meat (a small spoonful of apricot jam is especially nice).
Next to the cheese you serve at a party.
As a glaze for a tart, thinned with water and a squeeze of lemon, then brushed on just before serving.
Shaken into a cocktail (strain well). Gin cocktails are a good place to start.