Blackberry Season - Two Cakes!

Blackberry & Lemon Cake with Blackberry Fool

I’ve adapted this recipe from an old Australian Womens Weekly recipe I’ve been using for many years. It’s really simple, tasty and can be baked year round if you fill your freezer now with juicy balckberries.

Ingredients:

• 125g butter, room temp
• 165g caster sugar
• Finely grated zest of one lemon
• 2 large free range eggs
• 150g self-raising flour
• 60g ground almonds
• 125g sour cream
• 150g blackberries (fresh or frozen)

For syrup topping & fool:

• 2 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoon water
• 75g caster sugar
• 1 tablespoon icing sugar
• 250ml whipped double cream

Method:

1. Preheat oven 170°C Fan / 180C regular. Grease a 20cm deep round cake pan; line base and side with baking paper
2. Beat butter, caster sugar and lemon zest in a large bowl until pale and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until combined.
3. Sift flour into mix & fold gently into batter, then add the ground almonds and sour cream. Spoon half the mixture into the prepared tin; top with a large handful of the blackberries, pressing lightly into the mixture. Top with remaining cake mixture and finish with another handful of the blackberries. Bake cake for approx. 60 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Stand cake in pan for 10 minutes.
4. While cake is resting, stir juice, the water and extra caster sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to the boil. Reduce heat; simmer for 2 minutes.
5. Pour syrup over cake in pan. Stand for 20 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
6. Combine remaining berries and any juices with icing sugar in a small bowl, mushing up gently with a fork.
7. Spoon whipped cream on top of cake, drizzle with mushed berry mixture and swirl lightly into the cream.

Mixed Berry & Lemon Curd Cream Dacquoise

Pronounced “DAK-WOZ”, this showstopper dessert is a combination of thin rounds of nutty meringue, layer and filled with whipped cream, lemon curd and delicious seasonal berries.

The light, crisp meringue is a wonderful base for rich smooth cream and the best fresh berries you can find. This could also be made for an Autumn dessert with roasted figs or juicy cherries steeped in brandy.

Ingredients:

• 60g finely ground almonds
• 60g icing sugar
• 150g whole almonds, lightly toasted
• Whites from 6 free range eggs
• 2 tsp white vinegar or 1/4 tsp cream of tartar
• 200g caster sugar
• Whipped double cream
• 250g lemon curd
• Fresh seasonal berries to decorate

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 100C and cut out 4 x 20cm circles from parchment paper. Lay these on baking trays and set aside.
2. Sift the icing sugar and ground almond together into a bowl and leave to the side. Blitz the toasted whole almonds in a food processor, not too finely as you want a bit of crunch and texture. Leave to the side.
3. In a spotlessly clean bowl add the egg whites and vinegar or cream of tartar. Using a hand mixer or the balloon whisk attachment on your stand mixer, whisk on medium speed until the egg whites start to foam (approx 1 minute). With the mixer running, gradually sprinkle in the caster sugar one spoonful at a time until all added. Turn the mixer to high speed and whisk until it turns to stiff, glossy peaks (approx 2 minutes).
4. Add the ground almond & icing sugar mix and fold gently into the meringue, then the chopped toasted almonds. I use the balloon whisk, detached from the mixer and held by hand to fold in.
5. Divide the meringue across the four parchment circles and spread evenly into disk shapes. Use a spatula to make sure they are even and approx the same size so they cook uniformly.
6. Bake in the preheated oven for approx 90 minutes until they dry out. Turn off the oven and leave the meringues inside to totally dry out.
7. To assemble the cooled meringue, place one layer on the bottom. Spread some cream & then a swirl of lemon curd, then top with a quarter of the berries. Repeat with the other layers and fillings.
8. Chill in the fridge for an hour before serving to make it easier to slice through.