blackberry pound cake
this simple blackberry pound cake is filled with sweet, tart blackberries. it's buttery, moist and lightly scented with lemon and rose water. dust the top with powdered sugar, or drizzle the a lemon maple glaze.
Equipment
- 8.5 X 4.5 loaf pan OR 9X5 loaf pan
- stand mixer with paddle attachment or hand held mixer with beaters
- parchment paper
- large spatula or spoon
- spice grinder or food processor, optional
Ingredients
blackberry pound cake
- 1 ¼ c (~180g) frozen blackberries, lightly thawed, lightly chop any large berries sub with fresh blackberries, do not chop
- 1 c (120g) all purpose flour plus 1 tablespoon for coating berries
- ⅔ c (80g) cake flour see notes for DIY version
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 c (226g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 c (200g) granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon zest, about two lemons
- ½ tsp rose water
- 1 tsp (5ml) vanilla extract
- 3 (171g) large eggs, room temperature
- ¼ c (61g) sour cream or whole milk yogurt
- ¼ c (59ml) milk, room temperature
maple lemon glaze
- 1 c (125g) powdered sugar, sifted
- 1 tbsp (15ml) pure maple syrup sub with more lemon juice
- 1-2 tbsp (15-30ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice
Instructions
blackberry pound cake
- Line 9×5 loaf pan (or 8.5 X 4.5) with parchment paper, leaving 1-2 in. overhang on the sides. Preheat oven to 350F (177C). Move an oven rack to the lower ⅓ of the oven (right under the middle rack level). Pull frozen blackberries out. Lighlty chop any extra large berries. Thaw the berries on a paper towel lined plate for about 20 minutes. Once thawed slightly, toss in 1 tablespoon of flour until all the berries are coated. Leave on the paper towel until ready to use in the recipe. If using fresh berries, you can skip this step.
- Whisk together flours, baking powder and salt. Set aside. If using regular granulated sugar, process sugar in a food processor for 30 seconds (or use superfine or caster sugar as normal). This is optional, but helps with the overall outcome of the cake.
- Pour the sugar into a small mixing bowl. Zest the lemons into the sugar. Pour the rose water and vanilla extracts into the sugar. Using your hands, a small spoon or whisk, work the sugar and flavorings together until a wet, sand like texture forms. Set aside.
- In a stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat/cream butter on low for 1 minute. Increase to medium speed for 4-6 additional minutes, until butter is light and fluffy. Stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Once butter is light and fluffy, beat butter with the sugar by slowly streaming in sugar. This whole step should take 1-2 minutes. Once all the sugar has been added, beat/cream the sugar and butter together for an additional minute. Sugar should be mostly dissolved into the butter at this point.
- Slowly add eggs to the butter and sugar. Add one egg at a time, beating until it fully incorporates before adding the next. Beat an addtional minute on medium speed. Switch to a large spatula, or spoon. The next steps will be done by hand.
- Fold in flour, yogurt and millk to the wet ingredients in this order: flour, sour cream, flour, milk, flour. Fold each part about 90% into the wet ingredients before adding the next. Fold all ingredients in the batter togther until smooth and well combined. Gently scoop ⅓ of the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Using a small offset spatula or spoon, level and smooth the batter into the corners and across the panGently fold the flour coated berries in the remaining ⅔ batter in the mixing bowl. Gently scoop the rest of the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Using a small offset spatula or spoon, level and smooth the batter into the corners and across the pan.
- Bake at 350F (177C) for 50 minutes ( in the lower ⅓ of the oven). Check the top. It should be golden, but not burned. There should also be a large crack in the center of the cake. This is where the steam escapes and is perfect! If the top is browning too quickly, loosely cover with a foil tent. However, by moving the cake to the lower ⅓ of the oven, this shouldn't be an issue. Return to the oven for 10-25 minutes, checking for doneness every 5-10 minutes (60-75 minutes total). When a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs, its done. Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool an addtional 50 minutes (1 hr total). Top with powdered sugar or the recommended lemon maple glaze.
lemon maple glaze
- Whisk the powdered sugar, maple syrup and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice together. Add 1-3 teaspoons additional lemon juice as needed to achieve your desired consistency. Pour the glaze over a mostly cooled cake (about 30-45 minutes out of the oven). Allow 1 hour for the glaze to fully set. Slice and enjoy!
Notes
diy cake flour: for 1 c (120-125g) cake flour, remove 2 tablespoon (15g) all purpose flour from the 1 c all purpose flour. replace the 2 tablespoon with an equal amount of corn starch. sift the new mixture together 3-4 times to fully blend together.
- since this recipe calls for ⅔, you can follow the above mentioned method with some flour leftover or you can scoop 4 teaspoons of cornstarch into a measuring cup. add all purpose flour leveled to the top to make ⅔ c using the spoon and level method. sift together 3-4 times. follow the remainder of the recipe as written.
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