Blackberry Jam Cake

It's not enough that I have literally dozens of cookbooks or that I have access to untold numbers of recipe sites on the internet, I also subscribe to several email newletters featuring recipes. All summer as the various berries came into season, delicious-sounding recipes landed in my mailbox. We were also experiencing the second hottest summer on record and I don't have air conditioning so there was no way I was going to turn on my stove and try out any of the recipes. I could only gaze longingly at the gorgeous berries when I did my weekly grocery shopping.

One recipe did catch my eye and get saved in my "Recipes to Try" folder, Blackberry Jam Cake. I can buy blackberry jam year-round. Which I did this week and baked the cake. Thanks to the cocoa and spices, the batter was initially a pleasant tan color. Then I added the jam and it turned lavender. Uh, oh. When you bake anything lavender, it becomes gray. I popped it into the oven with much trepidation.

The fragrance while it was baking was absolutely wonderful. Then it came out of the oven a lovely brown, not gray. I was also glad to see that it cooked all the way through. After last week's quiche fiasco, I was concerned that maybe my oven was too hot. The only problem I had with this recipe was the icing. It calls for 1 to 2 tablespoons of milk. One tablespoon was too little and two tablespoons was too much. It became runny as you can see in the picture. Nevertheless, both the icing and the cake are delicious.

Verdict: Yum! This one's a keeper.

Blackberry Jam Cake

(Source: MomsMenu.com )

1/4 cup butter or margarine

1 cup white sugar

2 egg yolks

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup buttermilk

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cocoa

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon allspice

1 cup blackberry jam

1 cup sifted confectioners sugar

1 to 2 tablespoons milk

1 tablespoon butter or margarine, softened

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine flour, baking powder, salt, cocoa, cinnamon, and allspice. Dissolve soda in buttermilk, stirring well. Cream butter or margarine and sugar, beating well. Add egg yolks, beating mixture well. Mix flour mixture into the creamed mixture alternately with the buttermilk mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Fold in blackberry jam. Pour batter into a greased and floured 10 inch Bundt pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 to 50 minutes, or until cake tests done. Cool in pan for 15 minutes. Remove from pan, and cool completely. Combine confectioners sugar, milk, butter or margarine, and vanilla. Beat until mixture is smooth. Spoon over cooled cake.

Recycle: jam and vanilla extract bottles

Compost: eggshells