A Berry Good Cake

– Posted in: Recipes
3 comments

Blueberries and blackberries are done for the season. Peaches aren’t really local, and apples aren’t ready yet. But all those berries in the freezer, well, we’re not just going to let them sit there! Fresh or frozen, this cake complements almost any kind of berry, cut up and sweetened to taste. Try it instead of shortcake, or serve it as part of a brunch.

Lemon Cornmeal Cake

Originally published in Eating Well, January 1992, p.66

1 cup yellow cornmeal — (or white cornmeal)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons butter — softened
2 large eggs
2 egg whites (or use 3 eggs total)
1/2 cup nonfat yogurt
1 1/2 tablespoons grated lemon rind
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line the bottom of a 10″ round cake pan with parchment or wax paper. (We don’t have 10″ cake pans, but our springform pans are wider than 9″ and we use those instead.) Lightly oil the pan and dust with cornmeal, shaking out the excess. In a medium sized bowl, sift together cornmeal, flour, baking powder and salt and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, and butter until well combined. Add eggs and egg whites, one at a time, stirring until just combined. In a small bowl, stir together yogurt, lemon zest, juice, and extract. Fold into the sugar mixture until just combined. Fold in the dry ingredients until just combined. Do not overmix. Place the batter in the prepared pan and smooth the top with a rubber spatula. Bake for about 40 minutes, or until the cake is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes on a rack, invert the cake, peel off the paper and cool completely. (The cake can be made ahead to this point and refrigerated, wrapped in plastic, for up to 3 days.) Cut the cake into wedges and serve, topped with the berries.

Visit A Way to Garden and Dinner Tonight for more fruit-related recipes.

About the Author

Kathy Purdy is a colchicum evangelist, converting unsuspecting gardeners into colchicophiles. She gardens in rural upstate NY, which used to be USDA Hardiness Zone 4 but is now Zone 5. Kathy’s been writing since 4th grade, gardening since high school, and blogging since 2002. Find her on Instagram as kopurdy.

In its own way, frost may be one of the most beautiful things to happen in your garden all year . . . Don’t miss it. Like all true beauty, it is fleeting. It will grace your garden for but a short while this morning. . . . For this moment, embrace frost as the beautiful gift that it is.

~Philip Harnden in A Gardener’s Guide to Frost: Outwit the Weather and Extend the Spring and Fall Seasons

Comments on this entry are closed.

Piece a Cake Bakery September 8, 2008, 1:38 am

Thanks for the recipe. I will try it this weekend! Looks very good. Stephanie

debra September 5, 2008, 11:59 pm

this is a recipe that’s going w/me to Thursday’s farmer’s market. I’ll let you know which berries pair well with it here, deb

Shady Gardener September 4, 2008, 10:26 pm

Yea! I love collecting good recipes, and I’ll look forward to trying it! 🙂