Warm Strawberry Crumb Cake

Warm Strawberry Crumb Cake

This recipe produces a cake with a "jammy" strawberry fruit with a light and airy cake. It is another great recipe from my Food and Wine Magazine.

Ingredients:

Filling

3 pounds strawberries, hulled and halved (8 cups)

1/2 cup sugar

2 Tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 1/2 Tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in 2 1/2 Tablespoons water.

1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped

Crumb Topping

1/2 cup lightly packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup plus 2 Tablespoons all purpose flour

Pinch of salt

4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cubes and chilled

CAKE

2 1/4 cup all purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 1/4 cup sugar

3 eggs

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup buttermilk

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Directions:

MAKE THE FILLING.

Preheat the oven to 350. In a large bowl toss the strawberries with the sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch slurry, and the vanilla seeds. Let stand until the strawberries release some of their juices, about thirty minutes. Pour the fruit filling into a 9 x 13 inch glass or ceramic baking dish set on a sturdy baking sheet.

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MEANWHILE MAKE THE CRUMB TOPPING:

In a medium bowl, mix all of the ingredients with your fingers until a coarse meal forms; press into small clumps

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MAKE THE CAKE

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, using a handheld electric , beat the butter with the sugar at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well between additions. Beat in the vanilla extract and scrape down the bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the batter in 3 additions, alternating with the buttermilk.

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Spoon the batter over the fruit filling, spreading it to the edge. Sprinkle with the crumb topping. Bake in the center of the oven for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the fruit is bubbling, the crumb topping is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes outs with a few moist crumbs attached, Transfer to a rack to cool slightly. Serve the crumb cake warm or at room temperature. serve with vanilla ice cream.

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NOTE: The fruit filling can be made with a combination of berries, i.e. blackberries, raspberries, and blueberries.