Aaaand…yum.
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OK.
BROWN SUGAR BUTTERMILK SNACK CAKE with BLACKBERRIES and CARAMEL WALNUT DRIZZLE (from Dede Wilson’s Unforgettable Desserts)
Cake
1 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
Heaping 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
6 tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature, cut into pieces
1/3 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 large egg at room temperature
1/2 cup plus 1 tbsp buttermilk at room temperature
1 cup fresh blackberries (we used Driscolls brand, which were absolutely the freshest, most flavorful blackberries I’ve ever tasted).
Icing
1/3 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
3 tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature
2 1/2 tbsp heavy cream
3/4 cup sifted confectioners’ sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup toasted walnut halves
For the cake: Position rack in middle of oven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat an 8” square pan with nonstick spray.
Whisk together flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl to aerate and combine; set aside. Beat butter with flat paddle on medium-high speed until creamy, about one minute. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about three minutes, scraping down the bowl once or twice. Beat in egg until well combined. Add the flour mixture in two additions, alternately with the buttermilk. Begin and end with the flour mixture and beat briefly until smooth. Scrape batter evenly into pan and smooth top with offset spatula. It will be a fairly shallow layer. Scatter blackberries evenly on top, reserving about five of them; do not press into batter (they will sink during baking).
Bake for 15-25 minutes or until a toothpick shows a few moist crumbs. The cake will just have begun to come away from the sides of the pan. Cool pan completely on rack. Cake is ready to decorate.
For the icing: Combine brown sugar, butter and cream in small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Simmer for one minute, whisking frequently.
Remove from heat and whisk in vanilla and confectioners’ sugar until smooth and fluid. It will firm up very quickly and if you whisk or cool it too long it will become too firm and sugary. Use a spoon to immediately drizzle about half the icing all over top of cake, then quickly sprinkle walnuts and reserved berries evenly over top while icing is still wet. Drizzle with remaining icing, which will set up almost immediately. Cake is ready to serve. Store at room temperature, well wrapped in plastic wrap, for up to one day.
