12 things: bake cakes

I made this berry nice cake a couple of weekends ago for a dinner party. The original recipe called for blueberries but I'm the sort of person who always has a bag of frozen berries in the freezer so I used them instead. This cake is as pretty as it is delicious to eat. Plus it contains yoghurt so technically, it's also healthy. *wink

I've realised the thing I love most about baking is the smell of fresh baked goods in the air, which always seems to coincide with the arrival of a hungry Stu in the kitchen. Then there's eating the cake itself, especially when it's still slightly warm from the oven. Life's little delights.

Berry nice cake

Ingredients

• Melted butter, to grease
• 150g butter, cubed
• 155g (3/4 cup) caster sugar
• 2 eggs
• 265g (13/4 cups) self-raising flour
• 1 x 200g carton fat-reduced strawberry yoghurt
• 150g frozen mixed berries, thawed
• Icing sugar, to dust
  

Method 

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Brush a square 19cm (base measurement) cake pan with melted butter to lightly grease. Line the base and sides with non-stick baking paper.

2. Use an electric beater to beat the butter and sugar together in a large bowl until pale and creamy. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition until combined.

3. Stir in half the flour and yoghurt until just combined. Stir in the remaining flour and yoghurt until combined. Spoon into the prepared pan and smooth the surface. Scatter the berries evenly over the top. Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Remove from oven and set aside in the pan for 10 minutes to cool slightly.

 4. Carefully turn out onto a wire rack. Turn upright and set aside for a further 20 minutes. Dust with icing sugar and cut into slices to serve.