Jam Cake

Jam cake is a well-loved Southern favorite and a great example of why bakers should always have jams and jellies on hand. Even if you never use them as a spread, scores of recipes call for them, from jam-filled muffins, donuts and bars to classic Linzer cookies.

Before you try those other options, though, make this cake. Seriously. Don’t let the long ingredient list and unusual icing intimidate you, because it’s easy to make, even for a novice.

Jam Cake Ingredients

• Raisins: The plumped raisins add sweetness and a textural contrast, as well as complementing the warm spices.
• Pineapple: The crushed pineapple lends the cake moisture and sweetness, and its juice helps rehydrate the raisins to make them plump and tender.
• Butter: Butter gives the cake richness and contributes to its texture, and it also provides the base for the caramel frosting.
• Sugar: Granulated sugar sweetens the cake, but creaming it with the butter also contributes to the cake’s rise and texture.
• Eggs: The eggs in this cake lend the batter moisture and help it set to its final texture. Natural emulsifiers in the yolks also help the butter combine better with the wet and dry ingredients.
• Flour: All-purpose flour gives the cake body and much of its texture, binding together the rest of the wet and dry ingredients.
• Cocoa: The cocoa’s chocolate flavor plays a supporting role here, providing an earthiness that plays beautifully with the jam’s deep blackberry flavor.
• Baking soda: Baking soda reacts with the buttermilk’s acidity to create gas bubbles that leaven the cake and lighten its texture.
• Cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves: This classic combination of warm spices complements the fruit jam and the earthy chocolate.
• Blackberry jam: The dark, sweet, summery flavor of the jam balances the tang of the buttermilk and the earthiness of the cocoa.
• Buttermilk: Buttermilk is a key wet ingredient in this recipe, helping moisten the dry ingredients. It also adds its own distinctly tangy flavor, and activates the baking soda.
• Pecans: The chopped pecans add a richness of their own to the cake, as well as a textural contrast.
• Brown sugar: Boiling the brown sugar with milk and butter is what gives the caramel icing its distinctive flavor.
• Milk: The milk’s sugars and proteins help contribute to the frosting’s caramel flavor, and it works with the confectioners’ sugar to create a smooth, spreadable consistency.
• Confectioners’ sugar: The confectioners’ sugar in the frosting provides its body, thickening the butter and brown sugar mixture to a usable consistency.

Directions

Step 1: Soak the raisins in the pineapple

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Open the can of crushed pineapple. Pour it into a small bowl with the raisins, and let them stand together for at least 30 minutes.

Editor’s Tip: The further ahead of time you combine these ingredients, the plumper and juicier the raisins become. They’ll also absorb more of the pineapple flavor.

Step 2: Make the cake batter

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Cream the butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl for 5 to 7 minutes, or until they’re light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating the mixture well after each addition. Combine the dry ingredients and whisk them until they’re well mixed. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the bowl, alternating them with the jam and the buttermilk. Beat the batter well after each addition. Stir in the raisin mixture and the nuts.

Step 3: Bake the cake layers

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Spread the batter into two greased and floured 9-inch round cake pans. Bake the cake layers at 350°F for 40 to 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool the layers in their pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then turn them out of the pans to finish cooling on the wire rack.

Step 4: Finish the jam cake

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In a large saucepan, melt the butter for the icing over medium heat. Stir in the brown sugar and the milk, and bring the mixture to a boil (the sugar should dissolve completely). Remove the saucepan from the heat and cool it until the mixture is just warm. Beat in the confectioners’ sugar gradually until the icing reaches a spreadable consistency. Spread the frosting between the layers, and then over the top and sides of the assembled cake. For a more finished appearance, press additional chopped pecans to the sides of the cake and then decorate the top with pecan halves.

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Jam Cake Variations

• Change the jam: Blackberry jam is the canonical choice for this cake, but it’s far from the only option. Strawberry jam also works, and so does raspberry. Less common choices such as grape jelly or black- or red-currant jelly, are also good and bring intriguingly different nuances to the flavor of the cake. If there’s another jam recipe you really enjoy (we have plenty for you to try) by all means give it a try and see if you like the end result.
• Make a marmalade cake: This is a bigger departure from the traditional flavor. Omit the cocoa (replace it with flour) and instead of plumped raisins, add candied citrus peel directly to the batter. The end result will be a paler cake that’s pleasantly tangy but still has a similar texture. This cake still works reasonably well with the traditional caramel icing, but the orange or lemon versions of our rich buttercream might be a better bet. This one’s different enough that you could serve the two cakes side by side at a potluck or dessert buffet.
• Change up the nuts: Pecans are the iconic Southern choice for nuts on a cake, but feel free to substitute hickory nuts, walnuts, almonds or hazelnuts if that’s what you have and what you like.

How to Store Jam Cake

Big layer cakes like this jam cake recipe are best stored in a domed cake stand or plastic cake keeper/carrier. Once the cake is cut, press a piece of wax paper, parchment or plastic wrap against the cut surface to keep it from drying out.

How long will the jam cake keep?

The jam cake will be at its best within the first day or two, but as long as it’s kept covered it’s still enjoyable for up to four days.

Can I freeze jam cake?

Absolutely. Both the cake and the frosting freeze and thaw pretty well. Once the cake is made, decorated and enjoyed, you can cut the remainder into smaller pieces or individual servings. Freeze those portions on a parchment-lined sheet pan, then once they’re frozen pack them into bags or freezer-safe containers for storage. The frozen portions will keep nicely for one to three months, depending how well you’ve packaged them. The less air inside the packaging the better they’ll keep.

Jam Cake Tips

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I love blackberry jam, but what can I do about the seeds?

If the blackberry seeds interfere with your enjoyment of the cake, you can either start with blackberry jelly or strain out the seeds. The easiest way to remove them is to heat the jam in a microwavable measuring cup until it’s runny and pourable, and then to force it through a wire-mesh strainer with the back of a spatula. A few seeds may still get through but you can pluck them out with (well-sanitized) tweezers if you wish. Let the jam cool before adding it to the cake.

How do I know if my baking soda is still good?

If your cake didn’t rise as well as you thought it should, or if you just want to be sure before you start, you can test your soda. It’s easy; just put a bit of baking soda in a measuring cup or small bowl and add a few drops of vinegar. If it doesn’t foam up vigorously, it might be time for a new box. Oh, and one more thing: Don’t bake with the box you keep in your fridge as a deodorizer. Its job is to absorb nasty odors from your fridge, and why would you want to add those to your desserts?

My family’s not big on raisins. Can I omit them?

Of course you can. They’re a pleasant addition for people who like raisins, but not everyone does. Feel free to leave them out if you wish, though you should probably remove about ¼ cup of the juice from the pineapple as well. The raisins normally absorb some of that moisture and bind it up. Any other dry fruit you have on hand can be a substitute, so feel free to experiment. Dates or even prunes are the closest thing to a direct substitute if you cut them into raisin-sized pieces. You just might want to call the prunes “dried plums” when you’re serving it. Although prunes are a versatile ingredient, some people just can’t get past the nursing home connotations.