By Second week of March. The wedding is seven months away and Tyler and I have been doing the practical things: calling a minister at New Hope Baptist who has agreed to officiate, making a guest list that currently contains forty-two people and which I expect will settle around thirty-five, thinking about the food. We are going to cook the food ourselves. Or rather: Gloria and Debbie will direct and I will cook, which is exactly the right arrangement.
I told Debbie about the wedding plans this Sunday. She tore up when I said we wanted it in Gloria's back yard. She said: that is the most perfect thing. She said: I will make the casseroles. I said: I was hoping you would say that. She said: and the sweet tea. I said: of course the sweet tea. She said: tell me what else you need. I said: just your recipes and your presence. She said: you have both. You have had both for two years.
Forty-two people in a back yard in October under an oak tree. Fried chicken, Gloria's style, and Debbie's casseroles and the sweet tea by the gallon and a wedding cake that I have been thinking about since January: a layered lemon cake with lemon curd filling and cream cheese frosting. The coconut cake is Gloria's birthday cake and belongs to her birthday. The wedding cake will be the lemon one, which is mine, which I have been developing for two years.
The wedding cake will be lemon — that’s decided and it’s mine — but between now and October there are Sundays to fill, and a baker who is joyfully planning tends to bake. This raspberry cream cheese coffee cake is the kind of thing I make when I want to practice the layering, the filling, the balance of fruit and cream, all the muscle memory I’ll need come fall. It felt right to make it the same week Debbie said you have both, because that is exactly the kind of morning this cake was made for: unhurried, full of sweetness, shared.
Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake
Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 45 min | Total Time: 1 hr 5 min | Servings: 12
Ingredients
- Cake Batter
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup sour cream
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- Cream Cheese Filling
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Fruit Layer
- 1/2 cup raspberry preserves
- 1/2 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
- Topping
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds
Instructions
- Preheat and prepare. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9-inch springform pan or a 9x13-inch baking dish.
- Make the crumble base. In a large bowl, combine flour and 3/4 cup sugar. Cut in the cold butter using a pastry cutter or your fingers until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Reserve 1 cup of this mixture for the topping.
- Finish the batter. To the remaining flour-butter mixture, add baking powder, baking soda, salt, sour cream, egg, and almond extract. Stir until just combined — batter will be thick. Spread evenly into the prepared pan.
- Make the cream cheese filling. Beat the softened cream cheese, 1/4 cup sugar, egg, and vanilla extract together until smooth. Spread the cream cheese layer evenly over the batter.
- Add the raspberry layer. Spoon raspberry preserves over the cream cheese filling and dot with fresh or frozen raspberries, distributing evenly.
- Add the topping. Combine the reserved crumble with the sliced almonds and sprinkle evenly over the raspberry layer.
- Bake. Bake for 40–50 minutes, until the edges are golden brown and the center is just set. A toothpick inserted into the cake portion (not the filling) should come out clean.
- Cool and serve. Let the cake cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes before releasing the springform or slicing. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 390 | Protein: 6g | Fat: 21g | Carbs: 45g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 210mg