Almond Raspberry Coffee Cake

My day almost always starts with a fresh cup of coffee from my trusty old Black & Decker Coffeemaker. It's the first thing I do when I get out of bed, make coffee. Automatic. Half asleep sometimes. I do have a french press but nothing beats my old .. very old.. machine to do the chore in the morning. 2 cups worth of water, 3 heaps of ground coffee and one minute later I have a warm cup. 

If I'm lucky I will have a pastry in the morning and I would choose a coffee cake or a chocolate or almond croissant. 

With a coffee cake I would like it freshly baked and slightly warm. Coffee cakes are rather easy to make like muffins. You just combine the dry and wet ingredients just barely mixed. That's all it requires. If I have enough time in the morning I would do so bake for myself however, work awaits and baking is what I do all day. 

Here's a recipe for this very delicious coffee cake I would like you to try -

Mix together the following dry ingredients in a bowl -

2 Cups        all purpose flour

2/3 cup       granulated sugar

1 tsp            baking powder

1/2 tsp         baking soda

1/4 tsp         salt

In a separate bowl, making sure that the ingredients are all at room temperature, mix together -

1 Cup          sour cream

1/4 cup        melted butter

2 tsps           vanilla extract

2 ea.            large eggs, lightly beaten

For the topping, combine in a bowl -

2 Cups        fresh raspberries ( or Blueberries or a mixture of different berries )

1/4 cup       light brown sugar

1/2 cup       sliced almonds

So now we start baking. Preheat the oven to 350'F / 175'C. Do this before you start mixing your ingredients. Prepare your baking pan next - an 8" round or square or muffin pan so you can do individual servings. For baking pans spray or line the bottom with parchment paper, muffin pans line it with baking cups as well. Set it aside.

Now we combine the dry and the wet ingredients together. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and pour the wet mixture in. Using a spatula, stir the ingredients using a criss cross strokes. Remember, the objective is to barely mix it. So as soon as all the liquid has been absorbed by the flour mixture we stop mixing. Thats it. Don't be tempted to do anything further. 

Into your prepared pan, spread half of the batter in. Spread it evenly. Now, about a third of the almond & fruit mixture sprinkle it on top evenly. Cover again with the rest of the batter. Then, sprinkle the remaining almond & fruit mixture on top of the batter. 

Bake for about 30-40 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean.

Once baked, let it cool for about 10-15 minutes to allow the cake to stabilize. Otherwise it could potentially crumble when you un-mold it too soon.

How to un-mold your coffeecake -

run a knife or flat spatula between the side of the cake and baking pan to separate it if it's sticking. get a flat plate the size of your baking pan and cover the cake. Flip it, allowing the cake to slide down to the plate. Lift the baking pan out and remove the parchment paper. Take your serving plate, cover the bottom of the cake and flip it over again. 

Easy! You have to do this quick, though, so you keep the top layer pristine.

Happy baking!!!