Apricot Jam Cake
HERE IS AN OLD-FASHIONED jam and spice cake recipe, made incredibly fragrant with the addition of toasted and chopped hazelnuts. Apricot jam is my favorite, but you can use strawberry, raspberry, or any other favorite jam with good results. The cake has an open, soft crumb and a wonderfully sweet and crunchy crust.
| Enough | Time |
|---|---|
| Serves 9 | 25 minutes |
Ingredients :
- 1 1⁄2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1⁄4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1⁄4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1⁄4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup packed light
- brown sugar
- 6 tablespoons (3⁄4 stick) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup apricot jam
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 3 tablespoons sour cream
- 1⁄2 cup toasted and skinned hazelnuts, cooled and finely chopped
Instructions :
1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Grease an 8-inch square baking pan and dust it with flour, knocking out any extra.2. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, cloves, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
3. Combine the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl and cream with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice as necessary. Beat in the jam until smooth.
4. With the mixer on medium-low speed, add the eggs one at a time. Add the sour cream. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture a little at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition and beating just until incorporated. Stir in the nuts on low speed.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 50 minutes to 1 hour. Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes, invert it onto a wire rack, and then turn it right side up again to cool completely. Cut into 9 squares and serve.
6. Store uneaten squares in a cake keeper or wrap in plastic and store at room temperature for up to 3 days.
