Packed with one of the classic flavors of summer, a slice of this Fresh Blackberry Cake is the perfect treat for the end of a hot day!
I love all kinds of berries. Raspberries, blueberries, snozzberries (Willy Wonka fans unite!). You name the berry, chances are I’ll like it. But blackberries? Well, blackberries hold a special place in my heart. I grew up picking wild blackberries along the dirt road that ran down one side of my grandparent’s property in rural South Carolina. I picked baskets upon baskets of blackberries, and I probably ate at least one berry for every one that landed in the basket. (Do the math…that’s a heck of a lot of berries!)
It’s been a long, long time since I’ve been able to pick blackberries like that. I keep hoping that I’ll stumble across a wild blackberry patch somewhere near our house…but it hasn’t happened yet. So I did the next best thing. I decided to make my own blackberry patch. Several years ago, I planted a couple of bushes in the back corner of our yard, and they’ve been growing steadily. In my head, I’ll eventually have a huge blackberry patch like the one in my grandparent’s yard. My kids and then my grandkids (if we live up here that long) can come and pick blackberries to their heart’s content!
So what will I do with all of those blackberries? Well, the first thing is to make a blackberry cobbler like grandma used to make. We make cobblers quite often in the summer, and they hold a special memory for me. But next on the list will be this Blackberry Cake. This is a classic white cake frosted with a blackberry whipped cream frosting, and it couldn’t be more delicious!
Fresh Blackberry Cake
Fresh Blackberry CakeLast summer, I made the Fresh Strawberry Cake above, and it quickly became one of most popular recipes here on Spiced. That cake was inspired by a cake from a local bakery in Baton Rouge, LA, and I absolutely love it. In fact, I’ve seen that recipe pop up on a number of other food blogs (even some really big food blogs). They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right?
I’ve been wanting to do some baking with blackberries lately, so I took that tasty Fresh Strawberry Cake and tweaked the recipe slightly based on readers’ comments. The result was this Blackberry Cake, and I’m very pleased with how it turned out! My grandmother passed away several years ago, but I know she would be proud of this one!
I’ve included the photo from the Fresh Strawberry Cake that has been wildly popular on Pinterest here. Note the slice coming out of the cake. That photo was made possible thanks to my wife. She walked in from work one night, and I called her over to be my photo assistant. I think her first comment was, “But I haven’t done my nails!” Just kidding…she isn’t really like that at all!
It just so happens that the day I made this Blackberry Cake, my wife had to work late. I wanted to replicate that particular photo from the strawberry version, so I set up the camera to take it myself. I channeled my inner Gumby and reached over to pull out a slice while remotely clicking shots. I took all of one single photo before that slice of cake fell off the knife and splatted onto the table. (Don’t worry, I still scraped up that slice and ate it for dessert that night.) So lessons learned: (1) This Blackberry Cake is a new summer favorite and (2) Don’t try to take fancy cake pictures by yourself.
Did you make this Fresh Blackberry Cake at home? Leave a comment. Or snap a photo and tag me on Instagram (@Spicedblog)! Happy baking!
Looking for more tasty cake recipes? Check out these other posts, too:
Lemon Blueberry 7UP Pound Cake
No Bake Lemon Cheesecake
Fresh Strawberry Cake Roll
Fresh Blueberry Cheesecake
Charleston Coconut Cake
Blackberry Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 3 cups cake flour
- 1 Tbsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 cup milk
- ¾ cup sour cream
- 1½ Tbsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature
- 2 cups sugar
- 5 large egg whites
For the Blackberry Frosting
- 2½ cups blackberries (see note) ~12 oz
- 12 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1¼ cups powdered sugar
- 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
- ½ tsp almond extract
- 2¼ cups heavy cream
For the garnish
- 1 cup fresh blackberries
Instructions
For the Cake
- Grease and flour 3 9” round cake pans; set aside. Preheat oven to 325°F.
- In a medium bowl, sift together the cake flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, sour cream and vanilla extract; set aside.
- Using a countertop mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (~3-4 minutes on medium-high speed).
- Add about half of the flour mixture to the bowl; mix on low speed until well combined.
- Add the milk mixture to the bowl. Mix on low until well combined.
- Add the remaining flour mixture; mix on low until well combined. (Tip: Don’t forget to scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure all ingredients are fully mixed.)
- In a separate bowl, beat egg whites on medium speed until stiff peaks form. Carefully fold the egg whites into the cake batter until fully mixed.
- Divide the batter evenly between the 3 cake pans. Bake at 325°F for 34-36 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
For the Blackberry Frosting
- Wash berries and place in a medium saucepot over low heat. Once the berries are warm, muddle them in the saucepot until no large pieces remain.
- Cook blackberry puree for 3-4 minutes over low heat (or until ~1 cup remains), stirring often to prevent burning. Remove puree from heat and let cool completely.
- Optional: Use a food mill to deseed the mixture.
- Meanwhile, in the bowl of a countertop mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla extract and almond extract on high speed until smooth.
- With the mixer running, slowly pour in the heavy cream. Stop and scrape the sides of the bowl once or twice during this step. Continue beating until frosting has thickened to a spreadable consistency and will hold medium peaks (~4-5 minutes on medium-high speed).
- Add the cooled blackberry puree and mix on low speed until well combined.
To Assemble the Cake
- Place one layer of cake on a large plate. Frost the top of the layer with Blackberry Frosting. Repeat with the remaining layers of cake.
- Using an offset spatula, frost the sides of the cake. (Note: It is helpful to refrigerate the frosting for about 20-30 minutes before frosting the sides of the cake.)
- Garnish the top of the cake with fresh blackberries before serving.
Notes
Congrats on your strawberry cake’s phenomenal success, David – I’ve seen it so many places, myself! I’m betting this blackberry cake spreads like wildfire too! Just look at that frosting!! Blackberries are my daughter’s all time favorite berry, and she would so love a slice of this! She might even offer to come be your assistant as you won’t try to sneak beets into her blackberry cake! Though, I gotta say – that one shot you took, looks GREAT! Hope you and Mrs. Spiced have a GREAT weekend!
Thank you so much, Shashi! I am indeed excited about that strawberry cake. I guess viral is a relative term that means different things to different people, but that cake went viral for me. 🙂 Blackberries have always held a special place in my heart…partly because I love their taste but also because they remind me of my grandma. I would LOVE an assistant baker/taste-tester. If you happen to know one, then feel free to send her my way! 🙂
To be honest, I don’t range summer berries by how strong I love them – I do love all of them. Especially blackberries and raspberries. Oh, does that mean I do range them?:) I have incorporated blackberries in our meals a lot (basically in salads, breakfasts, mojito and daiquiri), but I’ve never used it in desserts! Weird, isn’t it? Indeed, the beautiful color of the frosting (which reminds me lavender a bit) is saying to me: “Make a lavender – blackberry dessert, Ben!” How could I resist to your frosting? Well done, David, well done!
Haha! You and your lavender, Ben. You are always trying to sneak it into all sorts of recipes. Haha! I propose that you (or your husband) should grow lavender. It sounds like a fun experiment, and it would save you some moolah from having to keep buying it! But yes, I do agree with you…I bet blackberry-lavender cake would be excellent! 🙂
Haha! Sorry, David, I’m just having a lavender kick. Indeed, he’s growing for me some lavender, two kinds. The first is blossoming now, the second one….well, maybe next year:) But seriously, you inspired me for a few blackberry/lavender ideas – not that sophisticated but anyways!
That looks awesome! I have to bake with blackberries this season, they are really so good–and pretty, too! 🙂
Thank you so much, June! Truth be told, I don’t bake with blackberries as much as I should. This cake turned out great, though, so I need to grab some more blackberries and bake ’em up…if I can avoid just making another one of these cakes. Haha! 🙂
Hi David! I can’t wait to get fresh blackberries! This cake looks SO good! I think it tops the strawberry version. It is on my 4th of July feast list! 🙂
Oh man, thank you so much Dorothy! I wasn’t sure I could ever top that strawberry version…but I have to agree with you. I think this blackberry cake might actually beat it. It seriously didn’t last long in our house. My wife proclaimed it as one of the best cakes she’s ever eaten, too! 🙂 It would indeed be great on the table for July 4th picnics. Good call! 🙂
Holy cow David! That cakes looks beautiful – I can almost taste it! Love that you incorporated blackberries into it! Going to make this for sure!
Thank you so much, Raquel! I feel like blackberries don’t get enough love…but they are totally one of the best berries ever! This cake didn’t last long around here, and I totally want to make another one now! 🙂
Well done my man, this is one serious cake!
Thank you so much, Matt! This is indeed one epic cake. And it also disappeared epicly fast. Haha!
I love the color of the frosting! This cake is awesome 🙂
Thank you so much, Medha! I truthfully wasn’t entirely sure what color this frosting would be, but I was very pleased with the light lavender. Blackberries truly are one of my favorite berries!
Dear David, that is one beautiful cake- both cakes are actually! I will take a slice of each.
The color of the frosting is my favorite part. Pinned for later. Have a wonderful day my friend, Catherine
Thank you so much, Catherine! Now you’ve got my creative thoughts spinning, though. What about a strawberry cake with a layer of blackberry frosting in the middle? Or vice versa? It would require an extra step, but man that would be fun! 🙂
Wow – that cake looks super fluffy and light! And that frosting – just yum! Beautiful cake overall, pinned!! 🙂
Thank you so much, Christina! I was super pleased with how this cake turned out…but I was not super pleased with how fast it disappeared. Guess I just have to go make another one! 🙂
David, I hope you’re taking the weekend off… because you’ve outdone yourself!!! I used to pick blackberries as well when I was a kid, so I have special memories doing that, too :). I’m curious, how did you plant those? Any special instructions? Now that I’ve seen this beautiful cake, I’m dying to have a blackberry bush myself! Great recipe!
Haha! I did indeed take the weekend off, Heather…and it was awesome. The only problem is how fast it disappeared. Don’t you hate that? The weekends just seem to be over in a blink! So for planting the blackberry bushes, it wasn’t that difficult. I used starter plants from a local nursery, and they had little guides printed out for growing different veggies/herbs/etc. I grabbed the blackberry one. Something happened last year where the plants grew well, but they never produced berries. I suspect it has something to do with the acidity of our soil, but that’s an easy fix. I just need to do a little reading. Oh, and make sure to plant the bushes where they can spread out and vine…perhaps along a back fence? Good luck…growing berries is fun and not really hard at all! 🙂
What wouldn’t I do for a slice of that cake right about now?! I typically don’t go for white cake, but this one looks so light and fluffy that it’s irresistible! I too have fond memories of picking berries as a child when I went to visit my grandparents 🙂
Yes! Berry lovers unite! This cake turned out really well, and it is definitely now in our rotation of favorite summer desserts. 🙂
David, this cake is gorgeous!!!!!
Thank you so much, Alice!! I hope you had an awesome weekend! 🙂
Wow, you out did yourself on this one, it’s a beauty as is last year’s Strawberry one!
Thank you so much, Kevin!!
Mind blown, David! Pinning everything you recommended… the Blackberry Cake (which is the perfect way to end ANY day, BTW), the Strawberry Cake (it’s nice of you to give those “big bloggers” some new ideas now and then, heh heh), and the Blackberry Cooler. Finally signed up to your RSS feed too, ‘cuz I don’t wanna miss a thing (Cue Aerosmith song). Thanks for being awesome!
You totally rock, Meggan! Thank you so much!! And now I’m gonna be singing Aerosmith for the rest of the day. (But that’s fine by me…it’s way better than getting some crappy song stuck in my head. Haha!) 🙂
Grandma would definitely be proud mate! This is one stellar cake and of course, we know the strawberry one is epic- Hail the original creator of that epic dessert which WILL be made this Summer…well, Meg will make it!
Haha! Yes, we’ll have Meg make the cake and we’ll just eat it. That sounds like an excellent plan to me! 🙂 Except I might need to eat two slices…just because.
I can see why that beautiful strawberry cake is so popular! Love it – looks so yummy! Love this blackberry version – definitely need to try that soon! 😀
Thank you so much, Jess! I would be hard-pressed to pick a favorite between the strawberry and blackberry versions…so maybe I’ll just go with a slice of each!
Goodness…this is one gorgeous cake – one I’m certain your grandmother would be proud of! I have a story that relates to your dropped slice – I dropped a whole cake as I was styling for my 100th post. Luckily there was enough still in tact to get some decent photos, but boy, do I know how that feels! Hysterical! I do not know which of your cakes I need to try first…that strawberry has my name written all over it (too!)!
Oh geez…the whole cake, Annie!?! At least I managed to only drop one slice. You would never know it from that one photo that I got…but it ended up as a pile of broken cake and frosting about 5 seconds after that picture. Haha! I hope you scraped up that 100th anniversary cake…or maybe just ate it right off the floor. (Hey, I have no shame when it comes to eating cake!) 🙂
Hi, firstly this cake looks AMAZING – It’s the middle of winter here (New Zealand) and I can’t wait for summer to give it a go.
Secondly, I hate to be ‘that person’ but as a fellow Willy Wonka fan I was amused when I found out what a snozzberry is. You may not be…… http://www.cracked.com/quick-fixes/the-filthiest-joke-ever-hidden-in-childrens-movie/
Cheers!
Hey Karen! Sadly I have heard the rumors about the true identity of the snozzberry. I hadn’t seen that full description before though. I prefer to remain blissfully ignorant and just pretend that snozzberries are some mystical berry instead…haha! Either way, do give this cake a go once summer hits down there in New Zealand..it’s a real keeper of a recipe!! 🙂
I meant to comment on this cake the first time it hit my in-box! You’ve outdone yourself yet again with this cake. I like to turn recipes upside down, but never thought to use blackberries in a cake! Love this idea and the cake is beautiful!
I also can relate to those wild blackberry bushes. We had blackberries all throughout my hometown of Florence, SC. I remember many summers eating wild blackberries from bushes throughout our neighborhood. Those were the days! 🙂
Oh, I remember seeing those signs for Florence when we’d drive up to Belton! I’d give anything to go back to those days of eating wild blackberries off of the bushes all day long. 🙂 For now, I’ll just have to settle for this cake, though…haha!
I am so craving a slice of this cake David.. the blackberry colour and flavour looks so pigmented and delicious. I love summer cakes and this one definitely is getting saved to be made.
Thank you so much, Thalia! I have a hard time deciding between this cake and the strawberry one…but blackberries have always been one of my favorites! Plus, you’re right…the color of this cake is amazing. 🙂 I hope you enjoy this one as much as we do!
Thanks David for sharing the recipe of your blackberry cake. I have never tried one but seeing the pictures and the frosted with blackberry and whipped cream is really making my taste bud run for their money. OH! The cake looks absolutely gorgeous, and I am going to try making it today and surprise my wife.
This is one delicious cake, and I really hope you enjoy it! I love the white cake combined with the blackberry frosting. I do hope your wife is surprised, and I hope you guys enjoy a slice (or two) of this cake tonight! Let me know how it turns out! 🙂
I love the white cake combined with the blackberry frosting
Yes! I went with a basic cake to really let the blackberry frosting shine! 🙂 Thanks so much, Aget!
David, Thanks for the recipe. Delicious!
Thanks so much, Joseph!
Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful cake but I want to no if we don’t have cake flour thn can we use all purpose flour or no please tell me
Hey Reema! You can absolutely use all-purpose flour here instead of cake flour. The texture of the cake with cake flour is a bit different, but all-purpose will work for sure. I hope you enjoy this one as much as we do! 🙂
Thank you so much Dave
I want to thank u again because my cake was amazing wid all purpose flour it’s so soft & yummy I love ur recipes 💖
Awesome! I’m so happy to hear that this cake turned out well, Reema. 🙂 Happy baking, and don’t be a stranger if you have any other questions!!
The cake did not turn out to be what I expected. Nevertheless was it white. More of a yellowish colour. One of those times when unfortunately the picture of the recipe is either well edited or the ingredients I have used here in the UK are 100% different from the one in US. Very disappointed as this was supposed to be my daughter’s birthday cake 🙁
Hey Andreea! I’m really sorry to hear that this cake didn’t turn out for you. I can assure you that this cake is exactly as it appears in the photos, though. I took the photos myself in my basement photography studio. If I had to guess, I would say the difference in ingredients played a major role since this cake shouldn’t be yellow at all. I know that dairy products in particular vary quite a lot from the US to the UK (mainly in fat content), and that certainly could have had an effect. Either way, I truly am sorry that the cake didn’t turn out as expected. I hope your daughter has a great birthday!