Mascarpone Cake with Blueberry & Lemon
If you’re all about towering, light-as-air cakes, this sturdy number might not immediately appeal… but hear me out. It’s dense, yes, but with a silky mouthfeel thanks to loads of mascarpone and a slab of butter to boot, and delicate flavour from lemon zest, vanilla, and pops of blueberry. It’s also quick and easy to mix, no complicated steps. I baked it in my Lodge cast iron pie dish but you can use a regular cake tin.
It’s great with a cup of tea on a muggy early summer’s afternoon.
1 cup plain flour
⅔ cup caster sugar
½ tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
225 g mascarpone, at room temperature
2 large eggs, at room temperature
75 g unsalted butter, melted and cooled
½ tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup fresh blueberries
Zest 1 lemon
Method
Remove the mascarpone from the fridge and let it soften at room temperature for 10–15 minutes. Set the eggs out as well so they come to room temperature.
Preheat the oven to 180°C (conventional).
In a small bowl whisk together the flour, caster sugar, salt, and baking powder and set aside.
Grease and line a 20–23 cm cast-iron skillet or dish (or round cake tin) with baking paper.
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the mascarpone, eggs, cooled butter, orange essence, and vanilla until smooth.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and fold together gently with a spatula until just combined.
Gdently fold in two-thirds of the berries, taking care not to crush them.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and scatter the remaining berries over the top.
Bake for 45–50 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Leave to cool completely on a wire rack.
Serve dusted with icing sugar.
