Not so nice, but true: there exist recipes so fabulous and compliment garnering they make you want to share their secrets with no one.

The upside? It is these recipes we often rely on without fail to please a crowd. The downside? It is these same recipes that can turn an otherwise generous, recipe-sharing cook into selfish, hording one.
Herein lies the irony: it is only when we let go of our most treasured recipes that we can see their true value. Infinitely capable of feeding and pleasing any countless number of people, we have to give away our prized recipes before they are able to work their magic—winning hearts, spreading love, filling tummies and creating bonds between enthusiastic cooks and eaters alike.

Overcoming any temptation to be selfish, I am sharing one of my all-time favorite recipes. Armed with the following, you can create what is possibly the world’s finest tea cake.
What is tea cake you ask? Depending on your geographic location (as tea cake definitions vary greatly from region to region and country to country), there exists many variations and all of them are correct. For Inn Cuisine purposes, we are loosely defining tea cakes as any specific type of bread, cookie, biscuit or cake that is ideally suited to pairing with afternoon tea. Often understated yet sweet, sturdy enough to be picked up with the fingers and typically served un-frosted, tea cake can be enjoyed any time of the day but pairs best with lighter meals such as breakfast, brunch or lunch, or as a stand-alone snack with afternoon tea. As the name implies, tea cake is best enjoyed with hot tea (and fresh coffee as well).
The little bit of extra work this recipe requires is well worth any effort you put forth. Bear in mind, the most time-consuming portion of this recipe (i.e. making the raspberry filling) can be prepared and chilled days in advance, with the tea cake itself being assembled at a later time. Also, this recipe in its entirety may be baked up to 3 days in advance and cooled, covered airtight and chilled until needed. The one caveat? Don’t forget to remove the tea cake from your refrigerator and let stand at room temperature for at least 45 minutes before serving.
Ready to get started?

Raspberry Ripple Tea Cake
(recipe from Inn Cuisine, adapted from Better Homes and Gardens Christmas Baking, 2008)
for the filling
- 1 (12 ounce) package frozen raspberries
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
for the batter
- 2 & 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3/4 cup cold butter, sliced into thin pats
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 egg
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 10″ round tart pan that has a removable bottom; set aside.
To make the raspberry filling: in a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine raspberries, sugar and cornstarch over medium heat; cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat. Push raspberry mixture through a fine, mesh sieve, discarding seeds and pulp. Set filling aside to cool slightly; alternatively you may store airtight, refrigerate and use within 3 days.
To make the tea cake batter: in a large mixing bowl, stir together flour and sugar. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. *Measure and set aside 1/2 cup of this flour-crumb mixture and reserve for crumb topping. To remaining flour mixture add baking powder, baking soda and salt; stir well to combine. Make a well in the center of flour mixture to accept wet ingredients.
In a small mixing bowl, beat egg; stir in buttermilk until combined. Add all at once to the well you just created in the center of the flour mixture. Stir gently until just moistened; batter will be thick. Spread two-thirds of this batter over the bottom and up 1″ of the sides of prepared tart pan, using fingers to pat into place if necessary. Next, carefully spread the prepared raspberry filling on top of this batter. In small, irregular mounds, drop remaining batter on top of filling, spreading ever-so-gently with fingers or back of spoon if necessary. Allow mounds of batter to rest atop raspberry filling without pressing into bottom layer of batter. Sprinkle entire cake with the *reserved flour-crumb topping.
In the center of a preheated oven, baked tea cake at 350 degrees F for approximately 30-35 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean (filling will turn toothpick red). The cake should appear lightly browned (baking times may vary from oven to oven, so keep a close eye on your cake after 30 minutes). When tea cake is properly baked, remove tart pan from oven and allow to cool on wire rack for 15 minutes. When time has elapsed, remove cake from tart pan and place on cake stand or serving plate.
Cut cake into wedges or squares and serve warm.
Yield: 8 servings. Enjoy!
Click for Printer-Friendly Recipe



Thank you for visiting Inn Cuisine! Be sure to check out the newly remodeled Recipe Index and subscribe to Inn Cuisine's free RSS feed (also available via email) so you never miss a recipe. Need more ways to stay connected? Follow Inn Cuisine on Facebook & Twitter!
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.






{ 1 trackback }
{ 20 comments… read them below or add one }
I love a good tea cake and this one looks easy and delicious. I love the bits of rubied raspberry poking out too! Thanks for sharing the recipe with us. It must have been hard to release your favourite recipe!
A few years ago, I started a cooking group that met on Wednesday mornings. At the first get-together to plan what kinds of things we’d cook together, one of the women said she wanted to learn to make chicken cacciatore just like her mother-in-law’s, because (a) that’s the only kind her husband would eat, and (b) the MIL would not give her the recipe. Now, she had been married for at least 15 years, and for all that time the recipe was not offered. The immediate reaction of our group? Horrified! So our first cooking session was all about chicken cacciatore — not trying to replicate the MIL’s recipe, but creating our own super-wonderful variations. I hope that some day her MIL learns the lesson of letting go.
Hi Sandie!
I can smell the perfume of the raspberries by looking at your delicious photos.
I agree with you definitions depends a lot of countries and customs.
Just some days ago I found a called “torta caprese” a tasty chocolate cake and in my country with this name is a savory cake
Cheers!
Gera
Lorraine – This tea cake IS delicious and pairs perfectly with coffee or tea—I love that! But for me, sharing this recipe wasn’t difficult: I love to cook for people, pamper their appetites and make them feel welcome, special and loved—great recipes make that so much easier. Sharing those great recipes just allows other cooks to accomplish those same things—simple gifts maybe, but important ones nonetheless. It may sound silly, but I believe no food should be cooked or shared without love
Lydia – Can you imagine?! That story gives rise to the typical stereotypes of selfish, jealous MILs—which often isn’t the case at all. I’m fortunate—thankfully my MIL is fantastic and generous with her recipes and cooking tips!
Gera – It is amazing how much the definition of tea cake varies from country to country and region to region. While I was researching “tea cake” for this article, I was shocked to see that in some countries—tea cake is actually a marshmallow served on a cracker (or was it a biscuit?) base. Other times it’s merely a variety of sugar cookie. And still other times, it’s a biscuit. Fascinating! The Torta Caprese you mention sounds divine! You’ll have to point me to that recipe.
methinks i’d like a raspberry-rippled anything, but a moist and sweet cake sounds best of all.
Wow, that is gorgeous!
Rasberry cake sounds divine especially when the berry flavour is not only a trace but the very center of it. Yummy!
I love raspberry the most! Please send one to me;)
That looks amazing! And I love the tea cake definition!
My husband really loves raspberries, and this looks like such a perfect way to use them! Beautiful photos, and recipes, as always
Grace – I would agree with you even if this wasn’t my recipe
Alisa – Thank you!
Lore – What an eloquently stated comment…
Mental P Mama – If I could figure out a way to get one to you without the post office tearing it apart, I would!
Marguerite – I’m fond of the definition too—certainly covers a broad spectrum of delicious things!
Finsmom – I love raspberries as well—so tart and divine… Thank you for the compliments on my photos and recipes, it’s always nice to hear when they are well received!
Can I have some for dinner, please? It even looks fabulous in the before baking shot!
Wow, thanks for sharing. I’m printing out the recipe right now!
….and this can be made all year ’round…raspberries (frozen) are a decent product.
Oh my. How lovely; I have these miniature tins that would be perfect for this – just the right size to tuck in a bag for a journey, or a long workday. I am sure my family will adore this. Thank you!
I LOVE the pictures. This recipe sounds so mouthwatering. I have all the ingredients on hand and I think I justmight have to make this tonight! Thanks for sharing. Great blog
That raspberry ripple cake looks so good! I could definitaly go for a slice for breakfast!
I just made this with raspberry jam instead of the raspberry topping it called for and it was still delicious! This recipe is going down as one of my favorites!
How the heck did I miss this one? Absolutely beautiful cake! Thank goodness I saw this on Hayley’s blog!
~ingrid
Im making it in 10minutes as it looks YUMMY!!! We cant wait to try it.