Annie Warm weather fruit—at the ready in your freezer—is the perfect cure for wintertime blues.
My little secret to getting through the coldest days of winter? Breaking into my freezer cherry-berry stash. My 2020 arsenal includes currants (black, red, AND pink varieties!), sour cherries (ruby red + blush varieties), and perfectly ripe raspberries—all picked by hand (by me!!) last June and July.
To freeze the fruit, I simply gave it a quick rinse and remove stems. When I’m freezing cherries, I pit them before freezing. Then I spread it onto a wax paper-lined baking sheet and cover them with another piece of waxed paper. Then I freeze the little gems until firm (at least 2 hours or up to 1 week or whenever I remember it’s still in there, ha!) and transfer the frozen berries to airtight containers. These are my favorite containers.
There are countless ways to use these little gems. Here’s a few off the top of my head:
- Smoothies
- Ice cream
- Muffins and quick breads
- Cocktails (frozen sour cherries + bourbon = YUMMMM)
- Pancakes
- Pies or tarts
- Frozen fruit pops
Today, let’s tap into that summertime deliciousness in one of my favorite family recipes: Pick-a-Fruit Coffee Cake. I LOVE flexibility in recipes, and the best thing about this cake is that it can be made with any kind of fruit you have on hand. In the fall, try it with apples or pears. Got a plum or mulberry tree…or rhubarb patch? Those are perfect. I bet even mangoes or peaches would be delicious. Get creative with it by combining fruits. There are no rules!
I give my frozen berries and cherries some thaw time while I m ix up the cake. They should be still icy and mostly frozen when you sprinkle them over the batter. If they thaw *too* much, you’ll end up with a juicy mess.
The cakes gets its tender sweetness from the addition of yogurt, buttermilk (my fave option), or sour milk. To make sour milk, combine 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar (or ½ tsp. citric acid) and enough milk to equal 1 cup.
MORE LIBERTIES:
VEGANIZE: If you want to make this vegan, use a plant-based plain yogurt and sub the egg with 3 Tbsp. water mixed with 1 Tbsp. ground flax seed.
TOPPINGS: Fancy up your coffee cake by adding some fun on top. Here are some ideas. Add these before you top with the cinnamon-sugar and butter.
- Graham cracker crumbs
- Finely chopped nuts
- Salted roasted sunflower seeds
- Cocoa nibs
- Chopped chocolate
- Toffee bits
- Shredded or shaved coconut
- Granola
- Freshly grated nutmeg
Pick-a-Fruit Coffee Cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 cup plain yogurt, buttermilk, or sour milk (see note)
- 2 cups fruit, chopped, if necessary
- 1/2 cup cinnamon-sugar (see note)
- 2 Tbsp. butter, diced
- 1 tsp. lemon zest (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 13×9-inch baking pan.
- Beat sugar and butter until creamy. Beat in egg and vanilla; scrape bowl well. In another bowl combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Add the yogurt alternately with flour mixture, scraping sides of bowl once or twice.
- Spread in prepared baking pan. Top with fruit, cinnamon sugar, butter, and zest (if using). Bake 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
