Caramel Grape Pound Cake

Back in the good old days, a pound each of basic baking ingredients was quite literally mixed in a bowl to get what became known as the pound cake. One can never go wrong with an old-fashioned pound cake. Soft, pillowy and yet firm when warm from the oven, a pound cake tastes even better unadorned and stale a couple of days later. With the Aussie grape season fast coming to a close in the end of May, I tend to buy grapes even more and use them liberally in salads, pickles, smoothies, jams and even a lassi. Grapes fare well when paired with ingredients that tone down their sweetness and in doing so accentuate their glorious taste. Having tried every fruit out there as a topping for my pound cake, a grape pound cake seemed like the next logical thing to do.

I have used my basic pound cake recipe and livened things up by adding a generous amount of citrus zest. I have used coconut sugar for this pound cake which not only imparts a beautiful caramel tone quite fitting for autumn but also marries well with the juicy grape topping and sour base notes. As always, a gentle dusting of icing sugar suffices for this dense cake which was made for baking, packing away in a container and bringing along to a picnic in the sun.

CARAMEL GRAPE POUND CAKE

A dense old-fashioned cake baked with coconut sugar to render golden caramel tones is offset with the sweetness of the juicy red grape topping and the tartness of lemon zest.

Serves -8

Ingredients

250g butter, softened
1 ½ cups (240g) coconut sugar
5 large eggs (325g)
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup (235g) sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla powder/extract
zest of 1 large lemon
2 ½ cups (375g) plain flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup (150g) red seedless grapes
2 tablespoons flour to toss grapes in
icing sugar to serve

Method

Pre-heat oven to 180C. Line a base measurement loaf tin with baking paper.

Combine sugar, eggs, salt and butter in a large bowl and beat with an electric beater until pale and fluffy (about 3-5 minutes). Add sour cream and beat for another minute until mixed and smooth. Add flour, baking powder, vanilla and zest. Mix with a wooden spoon until thoroughly combined. Spoon the batter in the prepared loaf tin. Place grapes and the extra flour in a small bowl. Toss to coat the grapes lightly with flour. Place grapes evenly over the top of the cake batter.

Bake in the pre-heated oven at 180C for approximately 45 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 170C and bake for another 15-20 minutes until golden on top and cooked through when tested with a cake skewer down the middle. Remove from the oven and cool in the tin.

Serve with a dusting of icing sugar.

Will keep in the fridge for 4-5 days.

Notes

Coconut sugar can be substituted with rapadura or raw sugar.

For a truly indulgent celebration cake, drizzle with caramel sauce.

Note – This recipe was developed for Aussie Grapes.