One of my childhood favourite ice cream flavours, raspberry ripple, brings back memories of balmy British summers. Rushing to the ice cream van for a raspberry ripple screwball; those were the days. Why not take this and turn it into a cake, vanilla and tangy cream cheese frosting with the name's sake raspberry ripple on top. Zingier than the sweet inspiration, this loaf cake is a winner all round!

Fast and easy, this cake is the perfect weekend bake that's sure to please! Whip this up and treat yourself to a thick slice and a nice cuppa this weekend, and dream of those summer days! We'll be there before we know it!

Ingredients 

175 g very soft butter, plus extra for greasing

175 g golden caster sugar

250 g self-raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

2 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extra

3 tbs milk 

200 g raspberries (if using frozen, defrost fully before use) 

Zest of 1 lemon 

To decorate – 

150 g powdered sugar, sifted.

100 g cream cheese, at room temperature

50 g butter, at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

50 g raspberries 

Juice of 1 lemon

1 tbs icing sugar

Method 

 1 -

Heat the oven to 150degC. Grease a 900 g / 2 lb loaf tin then line the base and ends with greaseproof / parchment paper.

 2 -

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add your sugar and softened butter and beat (cream together) everything together until pale and fluffy. You can also use a hand mixer. 

 3 -

Once creamed together, turn your mixer to low and add one egg at a time, mixing thoroughly between each addition. Stop to scrape the bowl every now and again to make sure there is no unmixed sugar and butter. Once both eggs have been mixed in, add your milk and vanilla and mix until smooth. 

4 -

Gradually add your flour and baking powder and mix until almost combined. At this point, add the raspberries and mix until fully combined. The batter will be very thick but do not worry. Alternatively, you can layer the raspberries with the batter in the tin if you do not want to mix them in. 

5 -

Transfer your batter to your prepared tin and level. Bake in the middle of the oven for 45-60 mins or until a toothpick, when inserted, comes out clean. If the cake is browning too fast, you can cover with tin foil part way through baking. Once ready, remove and allow to cool for 10 mins before turning it out and letting it cool completely on a wire rack. 

For the cream cheese frosting – 

1 -

Before starting, ensure that your butter and cream cheese are at room temperature. Leaving them out of the fridge overnight is the best way to know for sure.

2 -

Add your softened butter and cream cheese to the bowl of a stand mixer and mix on a medium speed for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy. You can use a hand mixer or mix by hand if needed. Be sure there are no lumps of unmixed butter while you are mixing. To this, add your vanilla extract and icing sugar and mix until fully combined and holds its shape. Be careful not to mix at high speed or for too long as this can make the cream cheese separate and the icing will not hold its shape. You can still use over whipped cream cheese frosting; it will just be very soft but will be just as delicious. 

3 -

Once all mixed, place in the fridge to firm up for 1 hour (or overnight) before frosting your loaf cake. This can be stored in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-4 days. 

For the Raspberry drizzle – 

Add your raspberries, lemon juice and icing sugar to a heavy bottomed saucepan and cook on a medium to low heat until the berries have broken down, released their juices and it has thickened to a syrupy consistency. You can take it further if you would like the sauce a bit thicker. 

To decorate – 

Liberally pipe / spread your cream cheese frosting on top of your fully cooled loaf. Feel free to express your creativity and use fancy tips /swirls. Once happy, dollop your raspberry drizzle swirling into the frosting if desired. Slice and serve! 

This cake can be stored in an airtight container for 3-4 days.