Deep South Eats: Raspberry Almond Coffee Cake

This past Wednesday, I was called upon to bring a baked good for my Bible study fellowship day. Since I really don't like having baked goods in the house (I will consume them like a human vacuum), I always love to search my recipe books for a new delight. This coffeecake recipe was screaming at me from the pages because of its' simple ingredients and ability to be quick and easy. The fresh fruit is just what makes the biscuit-like dough all the more delicious balanced with the almonds and creamy glaze.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup fresh raspberries, rinsed and dried
• 3 Tablespoons packed brown sugar
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup sour cream (shout out to the dear husband who went to the store and got this for me while I was working away at the hospital)
• 2 Tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup of sliced almonds lightly toasted
• 1/4 cup of sifted confectioners' sugar (I am so not a sifter - go to town if you are)
• 1 Tablespoon of milk (you may need a little more as you stir up the glaze)
• 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract (I am going to try almond extract next time)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 and spray an 8-inch round cake pan. I used my Wilton springform pan and it came out beautifully with no struggle at all.
• Combine raspberries and brown sugar in a bowl. Stir gently and set aside.
• In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
• In a separate bowl, combine sour cream, butter, 1 teaspoon of vanilla, and egg. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir until moist (I really hate that word).
• Spoon 2/3 of batter into prepared pan. It is very much like a biscuit batter and will take a little work to spread it around the bottom of the pan.
• Spread raspberry mixture evenly over batter. Drop the remaining batter in spoonfuls over the raspberry mixture and top with almonds.
• Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes on wire rack.
• Combine confectioners' sugar, milk and remaining vanilla (I added a sprinkling of cinnamon). Stir well and drizzle over cake. Serve warm or at room temperature.

This received great reviews and I loved it myself. I thought the color and appearance was so pretty. Even the little nut loved the leftovers for breakfast this morning.

Recipe adapted from All Recipes' Raspberry-Almond Coffee Cake.