A buttermilk-based tender nectarine crumb cake that's full of fresh nectarines to make the most of stone fruit season. This is a lovely little breakfast cake or dress it up with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for dessert.
Nectarine crumb cake is a beautifully simple cake made from a bit of butter, whole wheat pastry flour, raw sugar, and nectarines, tidily topped with a sugary, slightly crunchy crumble topping. This is the kind of cake you'd like for a Saturday morning with a cup of coffee. I'd also enjoy it in the afternoon with a strong cup of tea. Yet while this cake is simple, it's just the thing you'd want for summer: unfussy, straightforward, and a snap to put together.
Now that we're into real-deal summer there's no excuse not to tuck the season's bounty into crumbles, cobblers, muffins, or perhaps a cake. I'm talking, of course, about nectarines in particular today.
Did you know that buttermilk in a recipe can omit the need for eggs? Perhaps not in every recipe but regarding the one I'm sharing today, for a nectarine crumb cake, I'd warrant you'd never miss the egg if you didn't know it was lacking.
I think peaches would make a fine stand-in for nectarines if you'd like to experiment, and I wouldn't turn down a cake that incorporated blackberries in addition to or in lieu of. It's summer. Take it easy.
Recipe
Nectarine Crumb Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 1 ¼ cups oat flour , or 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup unsalted butter , at room temperature
- ⅔ cup sugar
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup well-shaken buttermilk
- 4 nectarines , pitted and coarsely chopped
For the Crumb Topping
- ¼ cup old fashioned rolled oats
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- ¼ cup oat flour
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter , at room temperature
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F with rack in middle. Butter and flour a 9-inch round cake pan.
Make the topping
- In a small bowl, whisk together the oats, sugar, and flour. Rub in the butter with your hands until it forms a coarse meal.
Make the cake
- Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Beat butter and ⅔ cup sugar with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes, then beat in vanilla.
- At low speed, mix in the flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour, and mixing until just combined. Fold in the chopped nectarines.
- Spoon the batter into cake pan, smoothing top. Scatter the crumble evenly across the top.
- Bake until cake is golden and a tester inserted into center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool in pan 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack and cool 10 to 15 minutes more. Invert onto a plate and serve warm or at room temperature.
Helen spiridakis says
That looks scrumptious! Fun look at Ramadan from expats perspective.....however you omitted the increased "calls to prayer". You will never forget this experience....good book material!