Berry coffee cake

I made this coffee cake using the same berries as in the Berry compote recipe. Instant hit with the family. We finished about 1/3 of it already. This recipe is basically adapted from another Berry coffee cake recipe from the Bread Bible. There were few changes that I wanted to do





a) I want to put fresh fruit, and I want to be able to taste the texture of the fruit:- so I want whole fresh berries in the cake
b) the fruit shouldn't change the texture of the cake:- the problem with putting whole berries in any cake is that while the cake bakes, the berries explode while the cake is baking. So, this changes the consistency of the cake around the explosion, which makes that part soggy. Usually, it's fine. You just bake it a little longer, but the other parts are dry
c) I want to put lots and lots of fruit:- The problem with increasing the fruit is again more uncontrolled liquid seeping from the fruit into the cake, which makes it more soggy

Recipe is after the jump, but if you aren't bored yet, here's a somewhat technical explanation on how I got all of this done

So, to solve that problem, I had to take the juice out of the fruit without changing the texture of the fruit and also soften the fruit before it goes in so it doesn't explode. Sure, I could have just mashed the berries to extract the juice, but that would have changes the texture of the fruit too much. Besides, I have never tried to juice strawberries. Instead, I used a process called maceration. No, I didn't make the fruit dance and sing "Hey Macerena!" Maceration is a process by which you soften the texture of the fruit using it own's juices. You coat the fruit with sugar and put it in a wire mesh. The sugar sucks the juice out of the fruit and the juice gets filtered by the wire mesh. The process needs time and temperature to work. If your fruit is right out of the fridge , it will take longer than if it was at room temp.

Berry Compote

A Compote is a dish made by by boiling fruit in sweetened water. This dish can be made with almost any fruit, and is quite easy to make. The dish preserves the natural flavor of the fruit used, so it can be served whenever you serve fruit. It is usually served along with pancakes, waffles, but can accompany almost any baked good. My wife sometimes has compote with just bread, and I like to put to replace the Jelly in a Peanut-Butter-Jelly sandwich with compote. This dish is also good for extending the life of fruit that is starting to go bad. You got some good fruit that no one is eating, just throw them all together and make something different. You can mix any types of fruit in there (and even add dried fruit if you wish) Depending on what kinds of fruit you put in, the different flavors can blend together to create a refreshing new taste.

Since, the amount of sweetness in the fruit changes from fruit to fruit and season to season, you are not guaranteed to get the same flavor everytime you make a compote. That's why I tend not to get too concerned about measurements when I make compote.

Recipe after the jump