Fresh Apricot Cake Recipes

Steps:

• Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Butter a 23cm-deep cake tin (preferably not loose-based, see tip below) and line the base with silicone or baking parchment. Mix the topping ingredients and spread over the base of the tin.
• Mix the milk and vanilla together. Put the sugar and eggs into a large bowl and whisk with a tabletop or hand electric mixer until the mixture is thick, pale and increased in volume, about 5 mins. Test it is ready by lifting the whisk blades - if the mixture briefly leaves a trail, you are ready to proceed.
• Add one-third of the flour and whisk slowly to incorporate, then one-third of the milk and mix again. Repeat twice more until all the flour and milk is added. Slowly whisk in the melted butter.
• Halve and stone the apricots. Place, cut-side down, in the base of the tin. Pour the cake batter over the top and slide into the oven. Bake for 1-1¼ hrs until the cake is firm to the touch and springs back when lightly pressed.
• Cool the cake in the tin for 20 mins, then carefully remove from the tin, peel off the lining paper and serve warm or cold.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Make topping:
• Heat butter in skillet over moderate heat until foam subsides. Reduce heat to low and sprinkle brown sugar evenly over butter, then cook, undisturbed, 3 minutes (not all of sugar will be melted). Remove skillet from heat and arrange apricot halves, cut sides down, close together on top of brown sugar.
• Make cake batter:
• Sift together flour, baking powder and soda, and salt into a small bowl.
• Beat together butter, sugar, and extracts in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until pale and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes in a standing mixer or 3 to 4 minutes with a handheld. Beat in eggs 1 at a time, then beat until mixture is creamy and doubled in volume, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Reduce speed to low and add flour mixture in 3 batches alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture, and beat just until combined.
• Gently spoon batter over apricots and spread evenly.
• Bake cake:
• If your skillet isn't ovenproof, wrap handle with heavy-duty foil (or a double layer of regular foil) before baking. Bake cake in middle of oven until golden brown and a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes.
• Wearing oven mitts, immediately invert a large plate over skillet and, keeping plate and skillet firmly pressed together, invert cake onto plate. Carefully lift skillet off cake and, if necessary, replace any fruit that is stuck to bottom of skillet. Cool to warm or room temperature.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Use a little of the butter to grease a 9-inch round baking pan with a removable bottom. Dust the pan with a little of the flour. Sift the remaining flour with the baking powder and salt and set aside.
• Cream the remaining butter with the brown sugar. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Stir in the flour mixture and the vanilla.
• Spread the batter in the baking pan. Arrange the apricot slices on the top. Put in the oven and bake about 25 minutes, until the top of the cake looks fairly firm and is just beginning to brown.
• Sprinkle with the granulated sugar, return to the oven and bake another 10 to 15 minutes, until the cake is nicely browned. Remove from the oven, allow to cool 10 minutes, then remove the sides of the pan. Serve the cake while it is still warm, with creme fraiche, whipped cream or vanilla frozen yogurt on the side.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 10-inch round cake pan, 2-inches deep and line the bottom with a disk of parchment or wax paper.
• In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter and sugar until light and soft. Add the egg and continue beating until light. Add the yolks one at a time, beating well between each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Sift together the flour and baking powder and stir into the batter. Spread the batter evenly in the prepared pan.
• Arrange the apricots skin side down on the batter in concentric rows, overlapping slightly, leaving a margin of about 1-inch around the edge. Don't be concerned if the apricots mounds slightly in the center of the cake, the top will even out as the cake bakes.
• For the crumbs, mix the flour, sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. Melt the butter and stir it in evenly. Rub the mixture to coarse crumbs by hand. Scatter the crumbs over the apricot and the batter at the edges as evenly as possible. Bake the cake 1 hour until a knife point inserted in the center emerges clean. Cool the cake in the pan for about 15 minutes and invert a plate on it. Invert onto the plate and lift off the pan. Peel off the paper and invert a rack on the cake. Invert onto the rack and cool.
• Variations: Substitute 8 pitted and quartered plums or 3 cups fresh cut pineapple.

Steps:

• Heat apricots by placing them in a bowl, cover with water, and microwave on high for about 10 minutes or until the water is absorbed. Soften gelatin in the cold water. Blend apricots into the gelatin. Add lemon juice, sugar and salt and mix. Chill until slightly thickened (about 1 hour).
• Whip the cooled apricot mixture until frothy. In a separate bowl, whip the cream until soft peaks form. Fold the whipped cream into the apricot mixture.
• Split cake into 2 or 3 layers. Fill between layers, and frost side and top. Chill overnight.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Grease a 9-inch cake pan with butter, and dust with bread crumbs; set aside.
• Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the sliced apricots, and drizzle with honey. Cover, and cook gently until the apricots have softened, then allow to cool to room temperature.
• Meanwhile, beat the egg whites to soft peaks with an electric mixer. Slowly pour in sugar while continuing to beat to stiff peaks; set aside.
• Beat the egg yolks on low speed for a few seconds until slightly thickened.
• Slowly pour in sugar while continuing to beat until thickened and light-colored. Beat in milk, then sift together flour with baking powder, and fold into yolks along with cooled apricot mixture, walnuts, and egg whites until combined.
• Pour into prepared pan, and bake in the middle or bottom of the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Loosen the cake by running a knife around the edges of the pan.
• Invert cake onto a plate, then place another plate on the cake bottom, and flip right-side-up; cool completely before serving.

Steps:

• Combine flour and sugar in a mixing bowl. Cut in butter to make crumbs. Set 3/4 cup of crumb mixture aside for topping.
• Add milk, baking powder, vanilla, and EGG YOLKS to mixing bowl. Mix well. Beat EGG WHITES till soft peaks form. Fold into batter.
• If adding apricots to batter do so now.
• Pour batter into lighty sprayed 9 x 13 pan. Evenly sprinkle with apricots (if you didn't add them to the batter). Sprinkle with reserved crumbs. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Steps:

• To make the crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees with rack in center. Brush a 8-by-11-inch tart pan with removable bottom with butter.
• Place the almonds and 1 tablespoon sugar in the bowl of a food processor, and pulse until the almonds are finely ground. Add the butter, and process until combined. Pulse in the flour, the remaining 1 tablespoon plus 1/4 teaspoon sugar, and the almond extract until combined.
• Transfer the crumbly dough to the prepared pan. Using your fingers, pat out dough evenly to make a thin crust along the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Chill the crust 30 minutes.
• Bake crust until golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
• To make the filling and assemble the tart: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread the almond slices in a single layer in a rimmed baking sheet; toast in oven until golden, about 10 minutes. Shake the pan halfway through baking to make sure the nuts toast evenly. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar, salt, all-purpose flour, almond flour, and baking powder; whisk together. Whisk in the eggs, melted butter, and half-and-half until well combined. Pour the filling into the baked crust.
• Arrange the apricot halves, cut sides up, on top of the filling, packing the fruit closely together. Sprinkle the tops of the apricots with the remaining 1 tablespoon granulated sugar. Sprinkle the toasted almonds over the entire tart.
• Bake the tart until the filling is puffed and golden brown, 60 to 70 minutes, rotating the pan after 30 minutes for even browning. Transfer tart to a wire rack to cool. Unmold, and sprinkle with confectioners' sugar just before serving.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare the topping: Lightly grease and flour a 9-inch cake pan or an 8-inch square baking pan. In a small bowl, stir together the melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Spread the brown sugary mix in an even layer on the bottom of the pan.
• Cut the apricots in half and remove the pits. Arrange the apricots, flesh-side down, evenly over the bottom of the pan.
• Prepare the cake batter: Add the flour to a medium bowl. Sift in the almond flour, then use your fingertips to break up any clumps that don't fit through the sieve. Add the baking powder and salt to the bowl and whisk to combine.
• In a large bowl with an electric hand mixer, or in a stand mixer with the paddle attached, beat the butter and granulated sugar on medium until combined and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the vanilla extract, then the eggs, one at a time, mixing until smooth. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl.
• Add 1/3 of the flour mixture, then 1/2 of the milk, mixing to combine. Continue alternating the additions of flour and milk and mixing, scraping down the sides of the bowl, just until all is combined. (Make sure not to overmix during this step.)
• Spread the batter in an even layer over the apricot halves. Bake until the cake is set and doesn't jiggle when shaken, is golden brown on top, and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 35 minutes.
• Remove pan from the oven, and place on a cooling rack for 5 minutes. With the cake still in the pan, turn the pan over onto a serving platter. Wait 1 minute, then remove the pan. This cake is excellent warm, but it's also delicious at room temperature.

Steps:

• Mix the sultanas and sherry and set aside for 1 hr to soak.
• Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Grease a deep, 23cm loose-bottomed cake tin, and line the base and sides with a double layer of baking parchment that comes about 2.5cm above the sides of the tin. In your largest mixing bowl, beat the butter, sugar and vanilla together until pale and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one by one.
• Stir in the flour, baking powder, and the ground and flaked almonds. Next, add the soaked sultanas with any remaining sherry, the dried apricots, the mixed peel, and all the zest and juice. Scrape into the cake tin, smoothing out the surface.
• Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 1 hr 25 mins. Poke with a skewer in the centre to check it is cooked - if the skewer comes out with any uncooked mixture stuck to it, bake for 10 mins more before checking again. Cool in the tin. Decorated, or wrapped in greaseproof paper and foil, the cake will keep for up to a month.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix flour, baking powder and salt in medium bowl; set aside. Beat butter and 3/4 cup sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in extract. Add flour mixture; beat just until blended.
• Spread into greased 9-inch round cake pan. Top with apricot slices; sprinkle with 1 Tbsp. sugar.
• Bake 40 to 45 min. or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool completely.

Steps:

• Place egg whites in a small bowl; let stand at room temperature 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350°. Drain apricots, reserving 3 tablespoons syrup (discard remaining syrup); set aside., Place butter in a 9-in. square baking dish. Place in oven 3-4 minutes or until butter is melted; swirl carefully to coat evenly. Sprinkle with brown sugar. Arrange apricot halves in a single layer over brown sugar, cut side up., In a small bowl, whisk flour, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, beat egg yolks until slightly thickened. Gradually add sugar, beating on high speed until thick and lemon-colored. Beat in reserved apricot syrup. Fold in flour mixture., With clean beaters, beat egg whites on medium speed until stiff peaks form. Fold into batter. Spoon over apricots. Bake 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes before inverting onto a serving plate. Serve warm.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray a fluted tube pan (such as Bundt®) with cooking spray.
• Mix brown sugar and melted butter in a small bowl and spread evenly over the pan.
• Pat the apricot slices with a paper towel to soak up any excess liquid. Line them on the bottom of the pan.
• Sift flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon together in a bowl.
• Beat white sugar and softened butter in a bowl using an electric mixer until creamy and fluffy. Beat in eggs until thoroughly mixed. Add the flour mixture, sour cream, water, and vanilla extract. Beat well. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan.
• Bake in the center of the preheated oven, about 45 minutes.