"Roasted Balsamic Strawberry Cake?!" I hear you cry in alarm. Fear not, dear readers! This is a tale of profound success. So much success, in fact, that I this is actually the third time I've made this cake in the space of about 3 weeks.
Perhaps you have already heard of roasting strawberries in balsamic vinegar. It's something I've seen on a couple of my favorite blogs, and eventually decided to give it a go myself. It brings out their flavor dramatically, and there is absolutely no hint of balsamic left over. I decided that the best way to present these strawberries would be in cake form - but of course!
I wanted to top my cake with a streusel topping of sorts, and recalled an amazing cinnamon-sugar-struesel concoction that I have previously made from The Candid Appetite. (The recipe that the streusel comes from is for a "Coffee Cake", but I was incredibly thrown to discover that there was actually no coffee in said cake. I guess this is an American thing, meaning it goes with coffee, rather than containing it. Americans - can you help me understand?) The topping works wonderfully with the strawberries, and turns a perfectly tasty cake into an exceptional one.
If I still haven't persuaded you to make it, this cake is moist, sweet (with just the right amount of acidity from the fruit) and has a slight crunch thanks to the streusel topping. Serve it for breakfast, for afternoon tea, or with coffee. (Does this make it a coffee cake, America?) Try it!
IngredientsRoasted Strawberries - recipe from Completely Delicious
- 400g Strawberries
- 4 Tbsp Caster Sugar
- 4 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
- 100g Caster Sugar
- 1/2 Tsp Salt
- 100g Plain Flour
- 1/2 Tbsp Cinnamon
- 100g Butter, melted
- 200g Caster Sugar
- 200g Butter
- 3 Eggs
- 200g Plain Flour
- 2 Tsp Baking Powder
- 1/2 Tsp Salt
- 50mL Milk
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan.
- Hull and halve the strawberries (slice them up a bit more if they are large).
- Place the strawberries in a roasting tin and cover with the sugar and balsamic vinegar.
- Toss the strawberries to ensure they are easily covered, then place in the oven and roast for 15-20 minutes, or until the juices have started to thicken.
- Place to one side and allow to cool.
- Place the sugar, cinnamon, flour and salt in a bowl and mix well.
- Make a well in the mixture and pour in the melted butter.
- Use a whisk to mix the ingredients together well, breaking any chunks up as you go.
- Place to one side.
- Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan (or leave it on from when you roasted the strawberries), and line a tray bake tin or 2 x 9in square cake tins with baking parchment.
- Beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
- Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until well combined.
- Sift the flour and baking powder into the batter, folding in until well combined.
- Stir in the salt and enough milk to give a soft dropping consistency.
- Pour the mixture into your cake tin.
- Cover the cake batter with the roasted strawberries, trying to achieve an even distribution.
- Cover with the Cinnamon Sugar Streusel, again trying to achieve an even distribution.
- Bake in the oven for 25 minutes, or until a skewer comes out without any batter on it.