Oatmeal Raspberry Cake

As the zucchini infestation continues in our neighborhood I thought we needed a break in the sweets arena so I thought I would try a non-zuc baked good this week.  I had a recipe for an oatmeal cake that really sounded different.  Its a dense cake that at the same time has a neat crumble to it.  The original recipe called for chopped up fresh cranberries and orange peel.  It also had a thick sugary glaze that had orange juice as the base.  All of that put together makes me think of a Christmas cake, very sweet and very jolly. 

It is still to hot to be thinking Holiday baking even if the decorations are already showing up in the stores.  I thought about how to lighten the flavors for a more summery bite and remove a bit of that sweetness.  Folks are still all about swimsuits and short dresses, we aren't quite ready for heavy sweaters to cover up an overindulgence or two, thus a simpler cake, but one with grand flavor.  I took out the cranberry and added in some whole frozen raspberries.  I took out the orange in the cake and got rid of the frosting altogether. 

While the cake as it was will be great for colder months, and I plan to make it as such during that time, the current changes produced a wonderful summery cake.  I am the first to admit that I am not yet at the level of culinary skill to completely re-write a recipe to suit my needs but I am proud that I can give it a tweak or two and have it come out yummy, even if the berries do turn the cake blue and pink!

Oatmeal Raspberry Cake

2&1/4 cups all purpose flour, divided
1&1/2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 eggs, or equivalent egg substitute
1 cup milk
2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries, or any berry of your choice

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease and flour a 10 inch tube pan.  In a bowl stir together 2 cups flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer at medium speed for 30 seconds.  Add in the sugar and beat until combined.  Add in the eggs and beat again until combined.  Alternately, add the flour mixture and milk to the butter mixture beating on low speed after each addition until combined.  Toss the raspberries with the 1/4 cup reserved flour to coat well and fold all of it into the batter.  Spoon batter into prepared pan and spread evenly.  Bake for 50-60 minutes, until a wooden pick inserted near the center comes out clean.  Cool in pan for ten minutes then remove and cool fully on rack.   

I can imagine this cake would be tasty with any type of berry, or a nice mixture of several kinds.  I have several cups of frozen blueberries that may fall victim to this recipe, though I don't think I would get any complaints if they did.  I hope your gardens are overflowing and that you and your are enjoying the bounty of the summer!

Keeping it fresh,
Kelly, the origami ninja



   

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