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The Batter Thickens

A food blog balancing sweet treats & healthy eats.

Almond Blueberry Poppyseed Cake

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This cake is one that should have been on this blog several years ago! It’s a classic from my Mom’s family, that she grew up eating on special occasions. I frequently request it for my birthday, since it’s perfect for a May birthday. But it’s also perfect for an August birthday (or really, any time of year), and my Mom requested it this year! So it’s finally getting the post it deserves!

My mom also said she enjoys cakes that aren’t too heavy on the frosting, and she said that the Milk Bar layering style achieves that. So I cooked up this version of the classic cake. The poppyseed cake with almond frosting is one we’ve done before, so then it was just about adding in some crumb and jam. I felt like the jam was necessary for this style of cake, just to give it a little contrasting flavor. And it worked!

This is also my first exposure to cooking sherry! I never knew there was cooking sherry in this recipe (my mom makes this cake for me on my birthday, but I had never made it myself), and I have never used cooking sherry before. I was initially surprised to see it on the recipe card, because I didn’t think cooking sherry was a baking ingredient. I had some vague idea that it was alcoholic, and used in like… pasta sauces? Soups? I have no idea. But it really works in this cake! It just gives it an extra layer of richness and some depth of flavor.

And now I have cooking sherry… so… more excuses to make this cake again!!

This cake works well with a cream cheese frosting, as well as with this almond frosting. It also works well with the blueberry, and I think it would work with cherry jam as well. All this to say, this is a very versatile base cake recipe! It’s great as a classic 2 layer cake with cream cheese frosting, or as an Almond Blueberry Poppyseed Cake, zhuzh-ed up with all the bells and whistles. A perfect back-pocket recipe.

So I’m also saying… If you know me, then expect more versions of this cake in the future!

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Almond Blueberry Poppyseed Cake

  • Author: Audrey
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Ingredients

Almond Poppyseed Cake

  • 1 package vanilla pudding mix
  • 1 package yellow cake mix
  • 4 eggs
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup cooking sherry
  • 1/3 cup poppy seeds

Shortcake crumb

  • 1½ cups cake flour
  • ¼ cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
  • 5 tablespoons butter
  • 1 teaspoon almond vanilla extract

Almond Frosting

  • 1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 1.5 to 2 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
  • 1⁄8 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon almond extract
  • 3 tablespoons buttermilk powder

1 cup of blueberry jam

Instructions

  1. Make the crumb: Heat the oven to 250°F. Combine the cake flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Toss with your hands to mix.
  2. Add the melted butter and vanilla extract. Toss using a spatula until the mixture starts to come together and form small clusters.
  3. Spread the clusters on a parchment-or Silpat-lined sheet pan and bake for 30 minutes. The crumbs should be sandy at that point, and your kitchen should smell like buttery heaven. Cool the crumbs completely.
  4. Crumble any shortcake crumb into clusters that are larger than ½ inch in diameter. The crumbs will keep in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer for up to 1 month.
  5. Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease or line a 9×13 pan with parchment paper.
  6. Mix together all of the cake ingredients in a large bowl until combined and the poppyseeds are evenly dispersed.
  7. Pour batter into prepared pan and spread out evenly. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a knife inserted comes out clean.
  8. Make the frosting: In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until soft, about 1 minute.
  9. Add 1.5 cups of the confectioners’ sugar, the salt, and the almond extract. Beat on low speed until the sugar is well incorporated.
  10. Add the buttermilk powder and beat until incorporated. Add another 1/2 cup sugar as needed to thicken the frosting. Beat on medium speed until the frosting is smooth and fluffy, about 4 minutes.
  11. Assemble the cake: Put a piece of parchment or a silpat on the counter. Invert the cake onto it and peel off the parchment or silpat from the bottom of the cake. Use the cake ring to stamp out 2 circles from the cake. These are your top 2 cake layers. The remaining cake “scrap” will come together to make the bottom layer of the cake.
  12. Clean the cake ring and place it in the center of a sheet pan lined with clean parchment or a silpat. Use 1 strip of acetate to line the inside of the cake ring. Put the cake scraps together inside the ring and use the back of your hand to tamp the scraps together into a flat even layer.
  13. Use the back of a spoon to spread about 1/3 of the frosting in an even layer over the cake.
  14. Sprinkle about 1/3 of the shortcake crumbs evenly over the frosting. Use the back of your hand to anchor them in place.
  15. Spread about half of the jam over the crumb, using the back of a spoon to spread it out.
  16. Nestle the remaining cake round on top of the jam, and repeat the frosting, crumb, and jam layers.
  17. Put your final piece of cake on top, and frost with the remaining frosting. Decorate with any leftover crumb, as desired.
  18. Transfer the sheet pan to the fridge or freezer for a minimum of 7 hours to set the cake and filling. The cake will keep in the freezer for up to 2 weeks.
  19. When you’re ready to serve the cake, remove the acetate and allow it to come to room temperature.
  20. Slice the cake into wedges and serve.

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