Raspberry Coffee Cake

The calendar says spring, but Mother Nature apparently thinks that means it should rain for a week at a time.  It's actually nice and sunny today, but earlier in the week, the weather really had my down in the dumps, so I decided I needed to make something light and flavorful that would cheer me up.

You see, spring and summer are my favorite time of year.  Normally, it's something like this: the sun is shining, the birds are chirping, the sky is blue, the grass is green and the trees are in full bloom.  I'm driving with the radio up and the windows down, and all of my favorite fruits are in season: watermelon, strawberries, cantaloupe, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, watermelon (yes, I like watermelon so much it made the list twice).... mmm.

Only, mostly it's been like this: dark, chilly, wet, gloomy.  I'm really an outdoorsy person, but this weather makes it really hard for me to want to go from my front door to the car, never mind do anything fun.

Some early berries are starting to hit shelves, and they're everything you'd expect from seasonal fruit: bright and colorful, juicy and delicious.  So, I decided to the bring the outside in.  A lot of coffee cakes have a full bottom and top dough.  I liked this one because there was just a little bit of dough on top, which really lets the tartness of the raspberries take center stage.  If you prefer your coffee cake a little more contained, simply double the dough recipe.  The dough is quite a bit sticky, though, so you'll want to be careful spreading it over the raspberries.

I can't speak for everyone else, but this definitely brightened my mood.  The cake is light and fluffy and the raspberries are the perfect combination of sweet and tart.  While this would certainly work with frozen berries, this really lets the flavor of the fresh berries shine.

Raspberry Coffee Cake

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For the filling:
1 cup raspberries
3 Tbs brown sugar

For the dough:
1 c. flour
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 egg
1/2 c. sour cream
3 Tbs butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla extract

For the icing:
1/4 c. confectioners sugar
1 1/2 tsp. milk
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°F.  Grease an 8" square baking pan and set aside.

In a small bowl, combine raspberries and brown sugar; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and baking soda.  Stir in egg, sour cream, butter and vanilla.  Mix just until combined and moistened.

Spread batter into baking pan, reserving about 2/3 cup (I found it was easier to spread using just the very edge of a fork).  Top with raspberries.  Spoon remaining batter over raspberries.

Bake for 25 minutes, until raspberries are set and top is lightly browned.  Let cool for 10 minutes.  Combine icing ingredients and drizzle over coffee cake.  Serve warm.  Store leftovers in an airtight container.