Big Momma’s Blackberry Jam Cake

Ingredients

Produce
- 1 cup Golden raisins

Refrigerated
- 3 Eggs

Condiments
- 1 cup Blackberry jam

Baking & Spices
- 1 tsp Allspice, ground
- 1 tsp Baking soda
- 1 1/2 cups Brown sugar, packed dark
- 3 cups Cake flour
- 1 tsp Cinnamon, ground
- 1/2 tsp Cloves, ground
- 1 Coconut caramel glaze
- 1 tsp Nutmeg
- 1/2 tsp Salt

Dairy
- 2 sticks Butter, unsalted
- 1 cup Buttermilk

Other
- 1 cup Walnut halves or pieces

Found on lovelesscafe.com

Description

Find this recipe in our cookbook, Desserts from the Famous Loveless Cafe (on sale!) This one’s a real Southern recipe from one of our staff members’ grandmother called, you guessed it, Big Momma. With our signature blackberry jam mixed right into the buttermilk batter, each bite of cake is both sweet and tangy and bursting with delicious flavor. Big Momma’s Blackberry Jam Cake Makes a 9-inch triple-layer cake; serves 12 to 16 Ingredients 1 cup golden raisins 1 cup walnut halves or pieces 3 cups cake flour 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon ground allspice 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cloves 1 teaspoon baking soda 2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, softened 1 1⁄2 cups packed dark brown sugar 1⁄2 teaspoon salt 3 eggs 1 cup blackberry jam, preferably seedless 1 cup buttermilk Coconut Caramel Glaze (*see below) 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease three 9-inch cake pans. Line the bottoms with parchment paper and grease the paper. 2. Put the golden raisins in a small saucepan. Add water to cover and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and let cool completely; drain well. Meanwhile, spread out the walnuts in a small baking pan and toast in the oven for 5 to 7 minutes, until lightly browned and fragrant. Let cool, then chop evenly. 3. Sift the flour, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, cloves, and baking soda into a bowl and set aside. With an electric mixer, cream the butter with the brown sugar and salt in a large bowl at medium-low speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping the bowl once. Add the jam and mix it in completely. Add the reserved dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, scraping the bowl once or twice. Fold in the raisins and walnuts. Divide the batter among the pans. 4. Bake for 28 to 32 minutes, or until a toothpick or cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then invert them onto a rack, remove the paper, and let cool completely. 5. To assemble the cake, place one layer bottom side up on a cake stand or dessert platter. Spoon one-third of the glaze over the cake, leaving a 1⁄2-inch border around the edge. Top with the next layer and repeat with more glaze. Set the last layer on top and pour the remaining glaze onto the cake. Spread just to the edge, letting the glaze drizzle down the sides. Let set for about 1 hour before cutting. *Coconut Caramel Glaze Makes about 3½ cups Ingredients 2 cups packed dark brown sugar 2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, softened 1 cup half-and-half 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut 1⁄4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1. Place the brown sugar, butter, half-and-half, coconut, and flour in a large shallow, heavy saucepan. Set over medium-low heat and cook, stirring, until the mixture is completely blended and just begins to boil. 2. Continue to boil gently, whisking occasionally, until the glaze thickens slightly, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in the vanilla, and pour the glaze into a bowl. Let cool slightly. Press a sheet of plastic wrap directly onto the surface to prevent a skin from forming and refrigerate until tepid and thickened but still runny enough to drop from a spoon like a thick sauce, about 1 hour. Baking Tip: If the glaze hardens, warm it gently in a microwave on the lowest setting until it becomes just thin enough to spread. Excerpted from Desserts From the Famous Loveless Café by Alisa Huntsman (Artisan Books). Copyright 2011. Photographs by Karen Mordechai

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease three 9-inch cake pans. Line the bottoms with parchment paper and grease the paper. 2. Put the golden raisins in a small saucepan. Add water to cover and bring to a boil. Remove from the heat and let cool completely; drain well. Meanwhile, spread out the walnuts in a small baking pan and toast in the oven for 5 to 7 minutes, until lightly browned and fragrant. Let cool, then chop evenly. 3. Sift the flour, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, cloves, and baking soda into a bowl and set aside. With an electric mixer, cream the butter with the brown sugar and salt in a large bowl at medium-low speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping the bowl once. Add the jam and mix it in completely. Add the reserved dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk, scraping the bowl once or twice. Fold in the raisins and walnuts. Divide the batter among the pans. 4. Bake for 28 to 32 minutes, or until a toothpick or cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then invert them onto a rack, remove the paper, and let cool completely. 5. To assemble the cake, place one layer bottom side up on a cake stand or dessert platter. Spoon one-third of the glaze over the cake, leaving a 1⁄2-inch border around the edge. Top with the next layer and repeat with more glaze. Set the last layer on top and pour the remaining glaze onto the cake. Spread just to the edge, letting the glaze drizzle down the sides. Let set for about 1 hour before cutting.
Place the brown sugar, butter, half-and-half, coconut, and flour in a large shallow, heavy saucepan. Set over medium-low heat and cook, stirring, until the mixture is completely blended and just begins to boil. Continue to boil gently, whisking occasionally, until the glaze thickens slightly, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in the vanilla, and pour the glaze into a bowl. Let cool slightly. Press a sheet of plastic wrap directly onto the surface to prevent a skin from forming and refrigerate until tepid and thickened but still runny enough to drop from a spoon like a thick sauce, about 1 hour. Baking Tip: If the glaze hardens, warm it gently in a microwave on the lowest setting until it becomes just thin enough to spread.