Italian Summer Country Cake

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An authentic Italian cake for strawberries and other summer fruit. This recipe makes a plain, moist cake you can bake in a fluted bundt pan or traditional ring pan.

I’m eating a piece of cake, remembering when my kids had birthday parties…the clearing of the table right after the cake — just before the presents —and all those paper plates with beheaded cupcakes on them.

Little cakes in paper liners with their fancy frosted tops chewed right off. I know some grown-up children who still consider cake a mere delivery vehicle for cream, fudge or frosting, but for me it’s always been the opposite.

As a girl, I’d scrape off the frosting and go all in for cake.

I like plain, simple cakes which is why I’ve always loved summer desserts like strawberry shortcakes.

It’s mostly about the fruit, with just the right proportion of cake to fruit stacked on a plate, soaking up the juices of strawberries, blueberries or peaches. And the cake can’t be too sweet or the taste of the fruit gets strange.

I’m delving into my cookbook library for Tuscan inspiration this month, and flagged a recipe for ciambella cake in Flavors of Tuscany by Nancy Harmon Jenkins.

It’s one of those cakes that could stand alone as a plain tea cake, a perfect partner for fruit. Ciambella refers to the round shape of the pan, and the cake is known as ring cake.

It’s a farmhouse cake, usually baked in a pan called a savarin mold to form the classic, smooth tube.

I looked all over my kitchen and rummaged through some still-unpacked boxes from our last move, and it seems that somehow, for some reason, I’ve not acquired such a pan.

Life is long, but I didn’t want to wait that long! While the pan is on its way to me (thanks to the magic of Amazon Prime) I used one of my trusty Bundt pans (as you can too).

I sliced a white peach (which was unbelievably sweet and delicious, unlike the disappointing mealy yellow peaches I’ve had lately), and made a sort of fruit salad with blueberries, red and golden raspberries and strawberries.

I’m imagining that some softly whipped cream on top of the cake and fruit would be very, very good. I hope you enjoy this cake!

Italian Summer Country Cake

Karen Tedesco

A plain and simple authentic Italian-style country cake to serve with strawberries or other summer fruit.

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5 from 3 community reviews

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Course Desserts

Cuisine Italian

Servings 10 servings

Equipment

10-inch fluted cake pan

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Ingredients

• ▢ Butter and flour for cake pan
• ▢ 2 ½ cups (215 g) all purpose flour
• ▢ 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
• ▢ ½ teaspoon salt
• ▢ ½ cup (120 ml) whole milk
• ▢ 6 tablespoons (85 ml) melted butter
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ▢ Grated zest from 2 lemons
• ▢ 3 large eggs
• ▢ 1 cup sugar, plus one teaspoon

To serve

• ▢ 1-2 pints Mixed berries
• ▢ Summer fruits such as peaches, nectarines and plums, sliced
• ▢ Powdered sugar

US Customary – Metric

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Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 425 (220 C) degrees. Butter and flour an 8 or 10-inch tube or fluted cake pan.
• Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl.
• Pour the milk in a large measuring cup and stir in the butter, vanilla and lemon zest.
• Beat the eggs with an electric mixer, gradually adding the sugar until thickened and pale.
• Stir in the flour mixture into the eggs in 2 additions, alternating with the milk mixture, just until the batter comes together.
• Scrape the batter into the pan. Bake 15 minutes, then lower the oven to 350 degrees. Bake for another 15 minutes, or until the cake feels springy to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
• Cool 5 minutes in the pan, then invert onto a rack and cool completely.

To Serve

• Gently combine berries and fruit in a bowl with a teaspoon or two of sugar.
• To serve the cake, dust with powdered sugar. Pour the fruit mixture into the center of the cake and all around the cake plate. Serve slices with some fruit on the side.

Karen’s Notes and Tips

• The cake can be wrapped in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature 2-3 days.

This cake was adapted from a recipe in Flavors of Tuscany by Nancy Harmon Jenkins

Nutrition

Calories: 303kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 284mg | Potassium: 100mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 413IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 69mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutrition facts are calculated by third-party software. If you have specific dietary needs, please refer to your favorite calculator.

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Hey, I’m Karen

Creator of Familystyle Food

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I’m a food obsessed super-taster and professionally trained cook ALL about creating elevated dinners with everyday ingredients. Find simplified recipes made from scratch and enjoy incredibly tasty food! Read more about me here.

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