Eat Well, Live Happy: Raspberry Ripple Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

I hardly ever make a recipe from a cookbook that doesn't have a picture with it. This morning I wanted to bake something and while flipping through my Passion for Baking Cookbook I saw a recipe for a coffee cake with raspberry preserves and cream cheese. Even though there was no picture, I thought this sounded pretty good, so I decided to give it a try. I only had 3/4 cup preserves (the recipe calls for 1 cup, but I actually think that would have been too much). I also didn't have orange extract so I substituted it with 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice. I think the cake could use more of the cream cheese filling. Since I don't have a tart pan yet, I used my 9" springform pan, which worked very well. I actually think a tart pan may not have been tall enough. I greased my pan with Crisco instead of baking spray.

My only complaint about this recipe is that the cake batter is very wet and difficult to work with. The recipe says to put it in the fridge for 15 minutes, but I think next time I will try an hour or so and see if that helps. As you can see in the pictures below, I used flour when patting it down, but even that did not help much. Using the back of a spoon or a spatula might work better.

I was pleasantly surprised by this cake. I love raspberries and the taste of the cream cheese (although pretty subtle as there is only a small layer of cream cheese filling in the cake) and the raspberries paired with the cake tasted great. There is a little cinnamon in the cake and I thought that added a nice touch. It's not a heavy cake so it would be the perfect addition to a breakfast or brunch with a group of people. I like that it's not your typical coffee cake and incorporates cream cheese and fruit (you could really use whatever preserves you like - strawberry, blackberry or blueberry would also work well). If you give this a try I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Raspberry Ripple Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

Recipe courtesy “A Passion for Baking" Cookbook”

Elegant and easy, this moist streusel-topped coffee cake does triple duty as a breakfast sweet, a coffee or tea-break snack, or a springtime dessert for a more elaborate meal.

FILLING:

3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 large egg
2 Tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

CAKE:

2¼ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup sugar
¾ cup unsalted butter, cut into chunks
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 Tablespoon orange zest (or 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice)
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
¾ cup buttermilk

1 cup raspberry preserves

FINISHING TOUCH:

Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9-inch tart or springform pan with nonstick cooking spray. Place pan on parchment paper-lined baking sheet.

For filling, in a food processor, blend cream cheese with egg, sugar and vanilla; spoon mixture into a small bowl and set aside. Do not wash food processor bowl.

For cake, combine flour and sugar in food processor. Cut in butter until mixture is a crumbly streusel. Set aside ½ cup streusel mixture for topping. Transfer remaining streusel mixture to a mixer bowl and stir in baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and orange zest. Stir in egg, vanilla and buttermilk to make a soft batter. Chill batter about 15 minutes for easier handling.

Spread or pat two-thirds of batter over bottom and up sides of prepared pan (flour hands to make this easier). Spread or disperse cream cheese filling and then raspberry preserves on top of batter. Spoon or dollop remaining batter over cream cheese-jam layer. Sprinkle on reserved streusel mixture.

Bake at 350°F for 35-40 minutes or until the cake tests done. Cool well. Dust with confectioners’ sugar. Refrigerate leftovers.

Yield: Makes 8 to 12 servings.

NOTES: Cake batter is wet and difficult to work with. Try spreading it with a spatula or the back of a spoon.