Basque Cake With Cherry Preserves is a light, moist cake filled with cherry preserves. This French dessert is garnished with slivered almonds, and fresh cherries, and dredged with confectioners’ sugar. Enjoy a slice of this cake for dessert or with hot afternoon tea!
Origin and inspiration:
I know of no other cake that has a museum or a festival dedicated to it, other than the Basque Cake with Cherry Preserves or Gâteau Basque which has both. The origins of this cake are associated with the town of Cambo-les-Bains, in the Labourd province in South-west France.
I first came across this dish from one of my children’s early French textbooks. I vividly remember this cake garnished with wild cherries set against a wildflower meadow in the beautiful, idyllic French countryside. I drew my inspiration from this image to make this delectable cake.
This lesser-known recipe is the textbook variation I have used for many years. It has never disappointed me or my family. The tart cherry jam gives a zing to the cake while the almonds on top add an extra crunch to this moist cake. This method of making the Basque Cake filled with cherry preserves is straightforward and can be made with ingredients in your pantry. There are instances in life where food brings laughter and joy. Isn’t that the real purpose of a good dessert?
Frequently Asked Questions:
- Can I vary the filling for the Basque Cake?
The Basque Cake With Cherry Preserves is traditionally baked by putting a cross on top. If the cake was filled with pastry cream or custard, then the baker would put a cross-hatch on top. This traditional dessert is usually filled with custard. Partly inspired by the wild cherries montage, but mostly because my family prefers preserves to custard, this Basque Cake is filled with cherry preserves made from homegrown cherries.
2. What is a traditional Basque Cake?
The traditional Basque Cake is a combination of a pie and a cake. It has a dough base filled with custard and baked over. However, the book mentioned that there were some variations to the base. Some use the pâte sucrée which involves melting the fat or butter. I followed the pâte sablée which calls for the creaming of butter, sugar, and eggs and then folding in the flour. I prefer the pâte sablée as it has a rich, crumblier texture, while pâte sucrée has an austere, crispy texture. I have come across most cafés and restaurants where the Basque Cake is made more like a shortbread-style dough filled with pastry cream. Most recipes have thin shells with a thick custard filling.
If you’ve tried this recipe or have questions, I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to share (below) your thoughts, comments, or any questions that you might have. And if you like my recipes, you could subscribe to my mailing list for the latest recipes that will be delivered straight to your inbox. From my pen to your table, Bon Appetit!
Ingredients:
- Fat: unsalted butter; omit the salt if using salted butter
- Sugar: granulated sugar or caster sugar and confectioners’ sugar for dredging
- Eggs: fresh whole eggs
- Flour: cake flour; substitute with all-purpose flour
- Milk: reduced fat
Here are the step-by-step instructions on how to make this dish. Please refer to the recipe card below for the measurements.
How to make the Basque Cake with Cherry Preserves:
- Prepare the ingredients.
2. Use a stand mixer with the paddle attachment to cream the butter and sugar until light.
3. Gradually add the eggs one at a time and beat until fluffy. Add the vanilla essence or vanilla extract. Beat again until combined.
4. Sift the flour with baking powder and salt. Fold in the flour gently until incorporated. Do not overbeat at this stage. In a springform pan or ring pan mold, spread half the batter. Make a slight depression in the center and spread the cherry preserves.
5. Spread the remaining batter on top and smooth the top.
6. Sprinkle blanched slivered almonds on top.
7. Bake the cake for 45 minutes.
8. Remove the cake from the ring pan mold slowly by easing the edges or by unlocking the springform pan. Garnish with fresh cherries and dredge the top with powdered sugar.
9. Cool the cake and then slice and serve for dessert or with hot afternoon tea.
Tips:
1. Almond paste or marzipan mixed with cherry preserves with a 1:2 ratio tastes good. Alternatively, add a few drops of almond extract to the cherry preserve.
2. Add 2-3 tablespoons of milk to the batter at the end to form a slightly dropping consistency. Milk helps add tenderness to the cake’s texture by providing moisture.
3. Cake flour yields a softer, tender cake than all-purpose flour.
Serving suggestion:
Slice the Basque Cake With Cherry Preserves when cool and dredge with icing sugar and some fresh cherries on top. Serve a slice with afternoon tea or enjoy it for dessert.
Storage:
Cool the cake completely before storing the slices in an airtight container. Refrigerate the cake for 5-6 days or freeze for up to three months.
Other French desserts that you might like:
Basque Cake with Cherry Preserves
Equipment
- Oven, ring mold pan
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cup King Arthur cake flour
- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 tbsp milk reduced fat
- ½ cup cherry preserves for the filling
- ½ cup slivered almonds for topping
- 1 cup fresh cherries for garnish
Instructions
- Prepare the ingredients.
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Use a stand mixer with the paddle attachment to cream the butter and sugar until light.
- Gradually add the eggs one at a time and beat until fluffy. Add the vanilla extract. Beat again until combined.
- Sift the flour with the baking powder and salt. Fold in the flour gently until incorporated. Do not overbeat at this stage. In a springform pan or ring pan mold, spread half the batter. Make a slight depression in the center and spread the cherry preserves.
- Spread the remaining batter on top and smooth the top.
- Sprinkle blanched slivered almonds on top.
- Bake the cake for 45 minutes.
- Remove the cake from the pan slowly by easing the edges or remove by unlocking the springform pan. Cool and garnish with fresh cherries and dredge with powdered sugar.
- Serve a slice of cake for dessert or have it with afternoon tea.
Video
Notes
- Basque cake is traditionally filled with custard. You could substitute with strawberry or raspberry preserves.
Nutrition
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please read my Disclaimer.
Gorgeous presentation!
so tasty!
This is perfect for parties, thank you Kanchan!