Cherry Bakewell Bundt Cake
The summer seems to be flying by. I wish I could make time stand still and hold onto those fleeting moments. I want more lazy, sultry days, when it is too hot to do anything, other than to sit in the shade with a good book. More time to enjoy the seasonal glut of fruit and vegetables. To be spoilt for choice just a little longer. Local cherries, in every hew from bright ruby to the darkest crimson, will soon be sadly missed and I find endless ways to make the most of their juicy sweetness.
I want to make a cake to celebrate Afternoon Tea Week (which runs from 8th - 14th August) and have been dying to try this Cherry Bakewell Bundt from Georgina Hayden's book 'Stirring Slowly'. I do love a new twist on an old favourite. The retro flavours of cherry bakewell tart, the sweet jammy base, rich almond filling, sweet icing, flaked almonds and glacé cherries, have all been incorporated into this pretty cake.
I have used Nordic Ware 's Heritage Bundt Tin for this recipe, but you could use any 2.3 litre/10 cup bundt tin. Taking the time to grease and lightly flour the tin, making sure you coat every crevice, helps to ensure that the cake comes out cleanly from the tin. As will lightly tapping the base of the tin on a work surface before placing the cake into the oven, to help release any air bubbles. Although this is quite a large cake, I guarantee people will be clamouring for more. Any leftovers will keep well for several days, stored in an airtight tin.
Cherry Bakewell Bundt Cake
Slightly adapted from Georgina Hayden's recipe in Stirring Slowly
Prep time: 30 mins
Cook time: 1 hour
Total time: 1 hour 30 mins
Serves: 16
Ingredients
250g of unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for greasing the tin
350g of plain flour, plus a tablespoon extra for the tin
150g fresh cherries
75g of glacé cherries
500g of golden caster sugar
6 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon of good quality almond extract, I always use Neilsen Massey
1/4 teaspoon of fine sea salt
2 level teaspoons of baking powder
300ml of whole milk
75g of ground almonds
2 tablespoons of flaked almonds
200g of icing sugar
2 tablespoons of Amaretto or water (see note below)
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4.
Lightly, but throughly, grease the bundt tin with butter and dust with flour, tipping out any excess.
Stone the fresh cherries and place in a blender or food processor along with the glacé cherries. Blitz to a purée and set aside.
Place the butter and sugar in a mixer and beat until light and fluffy (or place in a bowl and beat by hand).
Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, followed by the almond extract.
Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a separate bowl and add half to the butter, sugar and egg mixture.
Beat very briefly until just combined and then add the milk.
Gently fold in the rest of the flour mix, followed by the ground almonds.
Pour or spoon one third of the cake mixture into the prepared tin and then spoon over a third of the cherry purée, rippling it gently into the batter. Repeat twice with the rest of the mixture and purée.
Place the tin in the pre heated oven and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
Remove from the oven, place the tin on a wire rack and leave to cool in the tin for 15 minutes. Then turn the cake out onto the wire rack and leave to cool completely.
While the cake is cooling, toast the almonds in a small dry frying pan for 5 minutes over a medium heat, stirring all the time. When golden, tip onto a plate and leave to cool.
Meanwhile, make the icing by sieving the icing sugar into a bowl. Add enough Amaretto or water to make a thick icing (Note: if you use Amaretto the icing will be more creamy coloured than white).
Drizzle the icing over the cooled cake, scatter over the toasted flaked almonds and serve.