We're loving the new trend of cooking 'cake' recipes in a loaf tin. The result? A delicious am/pm treat or dessert (served with fresh strawberries in a light syrup and cream, of course) that's easy to portion and looks especially spectacular when cooked in a NordicWare Classic Loaf Tin. 

INGREDIENTS

185g butter
185g castor sugar
3 eggs, at room temperature
150g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
40g ground almonds
75mls buttermilk
125g medium-sized ripe strawberries, hulled and quartered
2tsp fresh basil leaves
Wilton Cake Release for greasing

METHOD

Preheat your oven to 180C, non-fan if possible. Grease your loaf tin with Wilton Cake Release (we recommend a natural bristle brush for this task). Ensure you get absolutely everywhere so that your cake slips out easily.

Cream together your butter and sugar (3-4 mins in a stand mixer) until it's pale in colour and fluffy. Beat your eggs and add them little by little to the creamed mixture, mixing well between each addition.

Sift your dry ingredients (flour and baking powder) into another bowl. Add the ground almonds and mix well.

Fold the dry mixture into your creamed butter/sugar/egg mixture until it's just incorporated. Resist overmixing at this stage. Add your buttermilk and fold through (we like to use a large metal spoon for this) to gently incorporate. Finely slice your fresh basil and add it and the strawberries to the mixture, again folding in gently to just combine (making sure the fruit is reasonably evenly distributed throughout).

Tip the batter into your prepared pan and bake in the centre of your oven for approximately 40 mins or until cooked (signs your cake is cooked: the cake pulls away slightly from the sides; the surface springs back when prodded; a cake tester comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs). NordicWare tins are very efficient and we recommend lowering your oven temp just slightly and testing before the recommended baking time.

This cake was adapted from a recipe in one of our most favourite baking books of 2022: Baking with Fortitude by Dee Rettali.