In Romania, our desserts are cherished. When a more complex cake isn’t feasible due to a lack of time, we opt for a “chec”. Essentially, it’s a loaf cake, simple to whip up with various filling options. The classic version is vanilla-based. Yet, it can be enriched with cocoa, walnuts, chocolate, or hazelnuts. There’s also a fruity variant.
Today however, I’ll guide you through the Romanian blackberry loaf cake recipe.
I have been picking quite a lot of wild blackberries recently, from my local forest, and used them to make different fruity desserts.
This blackberry loaf cake is very easy to make, it is light and fluffy, and has a refreshing flavour. It doesn’t have an overly sweet taste, on the contrary, so it is a perfect dessert for people who are not very keen on sugary desserts.
Ingredients for the Blackberry Loaf Cake Recipe
The main ingredient for this delicious Romanian blackberry loaf cake recipe are the fruits. I used wild blackberries, picked by myself from the forest. The other ingredients include flour, baking powder, sugar, eggs, oil, vanilla essence and Greek yogurt.
I highly recommend using Greek yogurt and not a low fat one. The more fat the yogurt has, the more fluffy and moist the cake will be.
How to Make the Romanian Blackberry Loaf Cake Recipe
The first step in making this Romanian blackberry loaf cake recipe is cleaning the fruit. I picked my blackberries from the forest, so the first thing I did when I came back home with them was to clean them in water and vinegar. I let them soak for around half an hour, before I rinsed and dried them.
Making the cake is very easy. I firstly mixed half of the sugar quantity with the egg yolks. When I obtained a creamy mixture, I added the oil little by little, and mixed well to incorporate it. You can mix by hand or use a standstill mixer, it doesn’t really matter for this recipe.
Next, I added the yogurt and the vanilla essence, and mixed until I obtained a thick cream.
I added the baking powder over the flour, and gave it a good stir. Then, I added it to the wet mixture, then mixed well and was careful to remove all lumps and was left a glossy batter.
In a mixer I added the egg yolks and whisked well with a pinch of salt. As they started to foam, I added the sugar and mixed until stiff. Don’t over mix as the whisked egg whites will give the loaf cake the airy texture.
Next, I folded the egg whites gently into the batter, until I obtained a very light texture. The last step was to add the blackberries.
I prepared a loaf tin with baking paper, and poured the batter inside. I kept a few fruits to decorate the blackberry loaf cake, before I put it in the oven. I baked the cake for 50 minutes, at 180 degrees Celsius. I started checking on it after 40 minutes – which is the time it should take to bake, but it wasn’t quite done. Each oven is different, so always check the timings. To see if the blackberry loaf cake was done, I tested it with a toothpick. When it came out clean, I knew it was done.
The cake will rise beautifully in the oven. Let it cool down completely before you take it out of the tin and cut it, otherwise it will collapse.
Notes and Tips:
- I added the blackberries whole in this loaf cake. If you don’t like the fruit texture, you can always mash them and pass through a sieve, before adding to the batter.
Romanian Blackberry Loaf Cake Recipe – Chec cu Mure
Ingredients
- 300 gr blackberries
- 180 gr flour
- 150 gr sugar
- 4 eggs
- 1 tbsp vanilla essence
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 150 gr Greek yogurt
- 50 ml vegetable oil
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
- Separate the egg white from the yolks.
- Mix the yolks with half of the sugar until you obtain a cream.
- Add the oil step by step, and mix well to incorporate it.
- Add the yogurt and the vanilla essence to the mix.
- Mix the flour with the baking powder, and add it to the wet mix. Combine all together until you have a smooth batter.
- In a separate bowl whisk the egg whites with a little bit of salt until they become fluffy. Add the sugar and whisk until the composition becomes stiff. Don’t over whisk.
- Fold the egg whites into the batter, gently, to avoid removing the air.
- Fold in the blackberries, gently, reserving a few for decorating the final cake.
- Prepare a loaf pan by layering it with baking paper.
- Add the batter in the tray, and decorate with the last remaining blackberries.
- Bake for 40 minutes, until the loaf cake becomes golden brown. Test to see if it’s done by inserting a toothpick inside it. If it comes out clean, it is ready. My oven is a bit older and doesn’t cook evenly, so it took around 50 minutes for this blackberry loaf cake to fully cook.
- Let the blackberry loaf cake cool down completely inside the tray, before taking it out and cutting it.
- Enjoy with coffee, tea, or as an afternoon snack.
FAQ:
Can I Use Frozen Blackberries for This Loaf Cake Recipe?
Yes, you can use frozen blackberries as well. Don’t defrost them before adding them to the cake. If you do, they will make the cake look purple and will have a mushy texture.
How To Store the Romanian Blackberry Loaf Cake?
This cake doesn’t need to be stored in the fridge as it will dry out. You can store it at room temperature, inside cling film or covered with a tea towel. You can also store it inside the oven (when it’s turned off, of course).
Can You Freeze the Romanian Blackberry Loaf Cake?
Yes, you can freeze this cake. I personally would slice it and wrap each slice individually in freezer safe bags. This way, when I want a slice, I don’t have to defrost the entire cake. The blackberry loaf cake will last for 2-3 months in the freezer.
For more similar Romanian dessert recipes, check out my recommendations below:
- Romanian sour cherry cake recipe
- Romanian cozonac recipe
- Romanian walnut cake
- Romanian biscuit salami recipe
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