Blueberry, Almond and Orange Cake
A couple of posts back I revisited my Blueberry Hazelnut Cake. So I really had to make another blueberry cake straight after posting that recipe as blueberries are everywhere and are so inexpensive! I picked up 3 punnets from a fruit stall in the city for $5 – such good value!
This is a riff from the original recipe, this time using ground almonds and orange. Orange slices make a great decoration for the top of the cake too. Like the original cake, I made a quick blueberry jam to spoon over the top. Better then frosting, and it really complements the blueberries inside the cake.
This is an incredibly moist cake, because of the blueberries and the Greek yoghurt. The cooking time is 45 minutes, but you may need to give it a little longer if it’s still not quite baked when you check using the skewer test.
Because it’s so moist I thought about adjusting the liquid quantities, but decided not to, as I think this cake works really well as a rich dessert, and is also a great cake for keeping. And don’t worry if it doesn’t rise that much, there is a lot of fruit in it which makes it harder to rise.
Any orange is fine for the juice and decoration – I used a blood orange as they are in season in Sydney and are so pretty!
_
125g softened butter
115g caster sugar
1 teaspoon almond essence
2 free-range eggs
1 heaped tablespoon Greek yoghurt
100g ground almonds
100g plain flour
I teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
60ml milk
1 tablespoon orange juice
200g fresh blueberries
For the quick blueberry jam
100g blueberries
50g caster sugar
Juice of half an orange
Orange slices for decoration, if desired
_
You can make this cake in a stand mixer, but I prefer to use a food processor. Either will work well.
I made this cake in a square cake pan with a removable base, but of course a round spring form pan is what most people will have, so that will work fine.
Preheat oven to 170 degrees C or 160 degrees C fan-forced. Grease a 20cm square pan with a removable baseif you have it, or a 20cm spring form round pan, and line the base with baking paper.
Cream butter, caster sugar and almond essence extract in a food processor. Add the free-range eggs and process until eggs are well incorporated. Pulse in the Greek yoghurt. Sift the ground almonds, flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda. Stir in the sifted ingredients into the mixture with a spoon, then stir in the milk and orange juice.
Fold in the fresh blueberries. Spoon into whichever cake pan you are using.
Bake for about 45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Check the cake after 35 or 40 minutes, and if it’s browning too quickly, place a piece of baking paper or aluminium foil over the top to prevent burning.
Meanwhile, cook the blueberries for the quick jam and the caster sugar with the orange juice in a small saucepan for a few minutes until the sugar is dissolved, the blueberries are slightly softened and the liquid slightly reduced. You can gently press on the blueberries with the back of spoon to help them release their juices.
Cool the cake completely in the pan before removing the sides/ring of the pan. As the cake is quite moist and therefore a bit delicate, carefully remove it from its base using an offset spatula or indeed an ordinary metal spatula.
Pile the blueberry “jam” onto the top of the cake. Serve with more fresh berries and orange slices if desired. I think this particular blueberry cake is fine on its own, as it’s so moist, but you could always dress it up with cream or ice cream if serving as a dessert.