Raspberry-Nectarine-Almond Cake

I have to say, raspberries might be my favorite fruit!  I was actually originally intending to make this rhubarb cake, but for unknown reasons my grocery store didn't have any. (Seriously, they have rhubarb in the dead of winter, so I have no idea what was going on...)  Anyway, I had to improvise, so I decided to go for a combination of raspberries and nectarines.  They made a very tasty cake with a light crumb and a nice background flavor of almonds, although I would still like to try this with rhubarb sometime!  The cake did end up a bit sweet, I think because the rhubarb would have been much more tart than the fruits I ended up using. Although the cake is plenty sweet enough for dessert, it also has that perfect coffee cake texture that I think makes it appropriate for breakfast, as well!

Happy Fourth of July! I'm off to Stockton to enjoy homemade spring rolls from my friend Kim's mom, a minor league baseball game, and fireworks! 


Raspberry-Nectarine-Almond Cake (adapted from Baking for All Occasions by Flo Braker, via Radishes and Rhubarb)

1 3/4 cup cake flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large room temperature eggs
3/4 cup well-shaken buttermilk
1 white nectarine, peeled and cut into small pieces
3/4 cup red raspberries
1/2 cup ground almonds
Sliced almonds, to decorate

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a 10-inch springform pan with oil.
2. Sift together the dry ingredients and set aside.
3. Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add the vanilla and beat to combine.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition until fluffy.
4. Add the flour and buttermilk in alternating additions (flour-buttermilk-flour-buttermilk-flour), mixing until just incorporated after each addition.
5. Add the nectarine, berries, and ground almonds and very gently fold to incorporate with a rubber spatula.
6. Scrape batter into the springform pan.  Sprinkle with sliced almonds.  Bake until a tester comes out clean.