Quick Apricot Cake
As some of you may know, I adore Blenheim apricots - so much so that I planted a tree in our backyard; I'm constantly on the lookout for new ways to enjoy 'cots. Naturally, I was super excited when my friend Janis gifted me, For the Love of Apricots.
As a cookbook, For the Love of Apricots is chock full of delicious ways to use apricots in its many forms - fresh, dried, jam and liqueur. The book is also a memoir I can personally relate to, wistfully recounting the days when apricot orchards ruled the Santa Clara Valley, before they were supplanted first by silicon chip manufacturing plants and now companies such as Google, Apple and Facebook.
I've been slapping post-it notes throughout the book, marking all the goodies I want to make, but I'm starting with recipes using fresh apricots since I have a boatload to get through (see my post about 100 + pounds of apricots!). First up is this easy cake where apricot halves are placed face down in a cake pan, covered with an almond-flavored cake batter and baked to a golden brown perfection.
I took the liberty of further streamlining the recipe by using store-bought almond meal rather than grinding whole almonds in a food processor. The almond meal confers a grainy texture to the cake which I enjoy. If you can't find almond meal, you can sub with almond flour. Almond flour is much more finely ground, so the cake texture will be different. I would compare it with eating whole wheat bread vs. white bread. But some may prefer the latter!
As a cookbook, For the Love of Apricots is chock full of delicious ways to use apricots in its many forms - fresh, dried, jam and liqueur. The book is also a memoir I can personally relate to, wistfully recounting the days when apricot orchards ruled the Santa Clara Valley, before they were supplanted first by silicon chip manufacturing plants and now companies such as Google, Apple and Facebook.
I've been slapping post-it notes throughout the book, marking all the goodies I want to make, but I'm starting with recipes using fresh apricots since I have a boatload to get through (see my post about 100 + pounds of apricots!). First up is this easy cake where apricot halves are placed face down in a cake pan, covered with an almond-flavored cake batter and baked to a golden brown perfection.
I took the liberty of further streamlining the recipe by using store-bought almond meal rather than grinding whole almonds in a food processor. The almond meal confers a grainy texture to the cake which I enjoy. If you can't find almond meal, you can sub with almond flour. Almond flour is much more finely ground, so the cake texture will be different. I would compare it with eating whole wheat bread vs. white bread. But some may prefer the latter!
Adapted from For the Love of Apricots by Lisa Prince Newman
Makes one 9" cake
Preheat oven to 325°F and position rack in the lower third of the oven. Generously grease a 9" fluted ceramic baking dish or 9" cake pan.
In the greased baking dish, arrange cut side down in concentric circles:
10-12 fresh apricots, halved and pitted
In a mixing bowl, beat until well blended:
3/4 cup (150 g) sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
Add to sugar/egg mixture, and mix until just combined:
5 tablespoons (70 g) unsalted butter, melted
In a small bowl, sift together:
1/2 cup (60 g) almond meal
1/4 cup (32 g) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Add flour mixture to wet ingredients and fold-in just until dry ingredients are moistened. Pour batter evenly over the apricots and bake for 40 minutes or until cake is golden and skewer inserted in center comes out clean. Make sure to insert skewer in the cake part and not through one of the apricots.
Remove from oven and cool on rack. If you like, before serving, dust with:
confectioners' sugar (powdered sugar)
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