Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Cherry Berry Crumb Cake (TWD)

This week's Tuesdays With Dorie recipe, Blueberry Crumb Cake, was the perfect remedy for a lazy Sunday morning at our house this past weekend. It was definitely a "stay in my PJs and fuzzy slippers" kinda day, and this recipe started my morning on the right foot. With a miminal fuss to prepare, in no time you're rewarded with a delicious homemade treat with your morning cup o' joe and a Sunday paper (plus you have the intoxicating smell of something sweet and delicious baking in the oven permeating the house).

This easy to assemble breakfast cake is enhanced with a healthy amount of fruit and topped with walnut-studded crumb topping. It's also a very forgiving recipe, as you can vary the fruit, nut, zest and spices to work with what's available in your pantry.

Previously, I've used blueberries (fresh or frozen works equally well), as well as other fruit (pears, frozen raspberries) with this recipe, and experienced great results each time. This time around, I used Trader Joe's Very Cherry Berry Blend, which is a frozen medley of cherries, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries. I always have a bag or two of this in my freezer, as it's a delicious mix-in for oatmeal or yogurt, and it makes for a fantastic filling for an impromptu crisp/cobbler.

For the most part, I followed the recipe as written and my notes are below:

- I didn't bother pulling out the food processor to make the crumbs, as it can easily be made by hand (and I didn't want to wash any more dishes -- yes, I'm working hard to keep the lazy morning theme).


- Instead of folding the fruit into the batter, I instead poured the batter into the pan, layered the fruit on top of the batter, then topped it with the crumbs. I think this layering approach helps to prevent all the fruit from sinking to the bottom.


- Perhaps it was due to the juiciness of fruit mix I used this time around, but I had to increase the baking time to 75 minutes (versus 55-65 minutes stated in the recipe). As expected, the cake was delicious! The cake was very moist, and I loved how the tart cherry/berry blend and sweet crunchy crumb topping played together.

Thanks Sihan of Befuddlement for selecting this keeper of a recipe! Make sure to visit the TWD blogroll to see everyone's delicious creations

36 comments:

Cristine said...

Looks yummy! I did the crumb mixture by hand, too! Why dirty the extra dishes! :)

Marthe said...

Great cake!! Absolutely loved this one!

Isabelle Lambert said...

c'est vraiment superbe et tes photos sont magnifiques :)

Steph said...

The addition of cherries sound nice! I think it's more fun to make crumbs by hand.

Danielle said...

Yum Cherries great idea! Your cake looks great and moist.

Anonymous said...

great idea to use the cherry berry mix! they look delicious.

i absolutely love that frozen cherry berry mix from TJ's. i've been spoiled with a tj's right down the street from me about 1 mile away ... and in 2 months, my husband and i are moving to a state where there isn't a TJ'S at all! i'm starting to freak out a bit about it. :)

chocolatechic said...

Gorgeous cake.

I should have used some powdered sugar on top.

Ingrid_3Bs said...

Mmmmmm, berrylicious! As usual your cake looks wonderful.

I wish we had trader joe's here in FL!

Stephanie said...

This looks delicious!

Mermaid Sews said...

Wow, what a great idea to use the TJ's berry blend, I am going to have to try that as I LOVED this cake and love all berries. Thanks

Banjo said...

ARGH I wish Colorado would get Trader Joes!!! Here's hopin.... ;) Your cake looks beautiful...

The Food Librarian said...

Love me that TJ berry mix. It is so yummy. Your cake rocks!!!

Jules Someone said...

This looks great! I'm going to have to look for the TJ berry blend.

vibi said...

Yours looks totaly decadent, Linda!

With all those mixed fruit... it does look, and probably is very healthy! ...although I'm not sure caloriwise, it better than any other cake! ...especially with that kinda King of Crumbs topping! LOL

Amazing!

betty geek said...

Wow, cherry berry delicious!

Gotta love Trader Joe's! :)

Anonymous said...

LOVED the powdered sugar addition, but then I love powdered sugar on anything. I miss not being near a Trader Joes - I bet their berries are fantastic. Everything looks wonderful - nicely done!!!

Leslie said...

Your cake looks amazing! I love how the berries look like swirls in the cake!

Anonymous said...

YOur cake looks fantastic. I used the very cherry blend too. YUM!

Fit Chick said...

This looks so good! I'm going to TJ's tomorrow to get some of those berries, yummy!

Ivette said...

I'm glad you enjoyed this cake.. I did too. The berry mix must have been great for this cake.. I MUST try that next time!

Sihan said...

Cherry berry! that sounds superb! loving your crispy photos.. and I'm glad that everyone enjoyed that homemade treat!

Passionate Baker said...

your cake looks great!
i think ill try some variations on the fruit next time as well!
<3

Kimberly Johnson said...

Your cake looks wonderful! The addition of cherries sounds fantastic!

Tami said...

Gorgeous cake! I bet that the cherries give it a wonderful flavor. I used blackberries this time. Now I'm going to add cherries to the list for the next time.

steph- whisk/spoon said...

looks good--love that fruit combo. i will seek out a bag of that at my local TJs!

Anonymous said...

I should have layered my berries. My batter was think and my berries sunk. Nice job!

Anonymous said...

Your version sounds and looks delicious! I will be making this again, too.

Flourchild said...

Im glad you liked the cake. I loved it and will make it again and again!

Pamela said...

Mmmm...I have cherries in the freezer that are begging to be used! Looks wonderful.

Shari@Whisk: a food blog said...

I love your cherry berry version of this cake! And your "stay in pjs" kinda day sounds perfect to me too!

Engineer Baker said...

Wow, that looks wonderful. I totally need to make this with cherries now.

Unknown said...

The last few times I've gone to TJ's I've been tempted by the berry mix. I should grab it. Great job on your cake - it looks delicious!

TeaLady said...

Looks really really yummy! Great job.

Liz said...

Sounds delicious! I think I would have liked the extra moisture from frozen berries, as mine was a bit dry. Next time I'll try a berry blend.

Y said...

Looks so so good!

Anonymous said...

I need a piece of that with my morning coffee!

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