I love the changing seasons here in New England. No matter what time of year it is, beauty and scenery are plentiful. The longest and most difficult season for me, however, is winter. Don't get me wrong, I love the first snow of the year and I can't imagine Christmas without hot chocolate, a lit fireplace and a chill in the air.
Yet, winter after mid-January seems interminable to me. The days are short and dark, getting from point A to point B becomes a challenge - without fail I get sick. The lack of light and the restricted movement always wears me down. Not this year.
This year the New England winter is on track to be the second warmest on record with the lowest snowfall in recorded history. I don't ever remember having it so easy during wintertime. New Years Day we walked on the beach. This week, temperatures are supposed to hit nearly 70 degrees (21c). The result? Spring is early.
While I enjoy the warmer weather, I'm deeply concerned about the impact of climate change. After all, the cold days of winter help along our autumn leaves, our apples, our cranberries, our maple syrup and our incredibly rich soil for planting. I'd much rather endure winter than risk losing the essence of New England to ever increasing temperatures.
For fun, I walked around photographing some signs of early spring. Half of the pictures you see on this blog post were taken on March 9, 2012. The other half were taken on April 15, 2011. The position of the light, the colors, the flowers - the same. Incredible. Have you noticed any changes where you are?
For now, I'm enjoying the easy, warmer weather. As I write this, I'm sitting on the porch with a cup of darjeeling tea and a slice of raspberry almond cake. Delicious.
Raspberry Almond Cake
250 g (18 tbs) unsalted butter, softened
150 g sugar (3/4 c)
50 g coconut palm sugar (1/4 cup)
4 large eggs
4 g (1 tsp) vanilla extract
200 g (1 1/3 c) almond flour
100 g (3/4 c) flour
10 g (2 tsp) baking powder
1 box/ pint fresh raspberries
Powdered sugar
Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour a 7X9 baking pan or similar size baking pan. Alternatively, you can line a muffin pan with muffin cups).
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Mix in eggs and vanilla. Stir in flours. Pour mixture into buttered pan and smooth with an offset spatula. Insert berries into the batter in rows. (If using muffin cups, insert one berry per muffin cup)
Bake for 30-40 minutes depending upon pan size and oven. Remove when inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool on wire rack. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.
(Notes: You can eliminate the coconut palm sugar and use all white sugar. I happen to like the extra richness the coconut palm sugar provides which is why I include it. I have also made this recipe without the baking powder and without the raspberries. It makes a buttery dense and more European tasting cake that's lovely with whipped cream, fruit and/ or a cup of tea.)
Also, congratulations to Allison at A Tasteful Garden - for winning the chocolate giveaway. Let us know which flavor you like best.
Bon appetit!
30 comments:
Gorgeous recipe, I'd love this with my coffee!
Oh, that looks divine! I will definitely try that next week.
It's definitely the mildest winter I can recall, El, but I don't mind. After last winter maybe mother nature decided to give us a break ; )
That cake looks SO good! If it were warm enough here I'd love to sit out on the back deck and have a piece with a cup of coffee. This morning I awoke to almost a foot of snow!!! Thankfully most of it gone.
The weather has been crazy and I love it. The cake looks wonderful too!
Simply gorgeous, El. I love almond cakes and this one looks amazing!
Thanks so much El for the chocolate!!
Whilst we still have snow on the ground up here, it's in a weird combination with muddy ground squishing up from underneath. Frankly, I found this winter's weather disturbing.
The almond cake looks divine!
Ah, the cake looks delicious, not dissimilar to a Hungarian cherry cake that I bake. Beautiful post, as always.
That's why i love your blog.
You're one of my fav inspiration to get my food photography better and better.
Keep up with the wonderful blogging.
Thank u so much.
This cake looks lovely!
The warm weather worries me too....I try to encourage more people to eat more meatless meals to make a difference in climate change...
Love your blog!
edie
Wonderful post, as usual!
Fabulous photos. I love raspberry desserts. I can't wait for the season to begin.
That being said, I am extremely concerned about the impact of the weather on maple/maple syrup as well. I was in Newport, VT last week, and somebody told me that there were predictions that in 6 years, if things continue this way, we may no longer have any maple syrup!
We have had pretty much the same weather as you here in the Midwest. Mild winter, low snowfall and some wonderful spring-like days already. Spring is my all-time favorite season and cakes like this are my all-time favorite treats. This looks delicious and I love using almond flour.
I love the spring photos you included here. Is the dessert as easy to make as it sounds? It looks to good to be true!!
I love the winter and I find the weather scary. What's going to happen if the warm weather continues. Maybe we'll have the opposite next year who knows. Beautiful cake and pics!
I feel like I'm worlds apart - up here in northern Maine, we still have feet of snow on the ground in places. It's been a very snowy winter up here. And yet the other year when the rest of the East Coast was hammered with snowstorm after snowstorm, we had little to no snow for the entire winter.
I think that chance plays a big role in the early arrival of spring, especially in the zone 5/zone 6 growing region where you are. One warm day could drastically change the trajectory of the seasons!
Perhaps I'll start worrying about maple syrup production if Canada fails to produce much year after year after year, given that they produce - what - 80% of the world's maple syrup?
Your cake looks beautifully light and moist and I love the little hint of raspberry in the bottom - the perfect welcome to spring (the weather here in the UK today is heavenly!)
Our winter barely happened and it is supposed to be really warm here this week. I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one with concerns about climate change, though I wish more people were talking about it trying to make a difference while we still can. On the other hand, it is important to make the best of what you've got and I'm glad you are enjoying spring and delicious cake!
i just love your pictures. :')
We had a warmer winter than usual in Florida too...which in our case is not a plus. Too much heat in the summer makes us long for some cooler weather in the winter!
Love this cake...perfect for tea. I still haven't tried coconut sugar. Going to look for it at Whole Foods next time I go.
It's still very wintery here, a bit of sunshine now and then, but nothing springy :(
I saw a few photos from London yesterday, it seems the first spring flowers are braving the cold weather :)
I love your food photos, El, they always invoke a very romantic and kind of a dreamy mood in me :)
Winter came in fits and spurts for us cold and rainy one day sunny and warm the next and spring is shaping up to be the same here.
The raspberry cake looks so perfect for inviting a special friend over for coffee to enjoy the beautiful scenery. It's been odd even for this California girl to go through winter without much snow or bundling up this season. I didn't even think about the impact this will have on the autumn crop. It has and will be an interesting year.
Did you know it's going to be in the 70's next week. I can't wait. I'm concerned about global warming too but I
I'm sooo excited about the weather! I love little cakes. These look great and I can't wait to try them!!!
Lovely cake of course!
The weather in So. Cal has been warm this winter. My garden is definately confused. Part of my peach tree blossomed than we had a cold snap when nothing happened, a few weeks later it warmed up again and the rest of the branches blossomed. Maybe my crop will be spread over a few weeks instead of all ripening at once. We are a big agriculture state and changes in our weather pattern will effect many.
Mimi
Wow! Your weather sounds so gorgeous but I do understand (and share!) your concern. It's been much colder than usual in Australia. Cold spring, cold summer, and now we're heading into what's supposed to be a historically cold winter. These little bites are a lovely way to celebrate spring. :-)
Awesome pictures. I've never actually baked with almond flour before - your cake looks delectable!
Your recipes should come with a warning, you are such a great temptress! (Loved the sugar buttons on your previous post!)
We did not have too much snow, but our winter was cold and long enough! The seasons seem about right, spring has finally arrived in these parts, just on time.
Now, how do I scratch a piece of your delicious cake off the screen? ;-)
i can't tell you how much i am loving this weather.
i mean sun for days....we hardly ever get that here in NE.
gorgeous cake...i have not been in the kitchen much, just too nice outside.
happy weekend!
YUM, what a great way to herald spring! lovely pictures!
Where did the Spring and Summer go? I had this post marked - came to it, and saw I had read and savored it long ago, then wondered why I had it earmarked... when I saw that I had not yet commented. THAT LONG AGO? Being in charge of "all this free time" is getting the best of me, I think. Gorgeous pensive post. Love to join you for my morning coffee. Wish I knew your first name, Miss Fresh.
Dad is now out of the hospital and recovering from a severe COPD exacerbation. Mom goes in for surgery in a week. This time with them has been so unexpected, yet so precious. Thanks for all your kind words. They buoy the soul!
:)
Valerie
Xo
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