Peaches and Cream Fluffy Muffin Cake

by Averie Sunshine on July 1, 2013

This cake tastes like a big, soft, fluffy, peach muffin.

But making a cake is so much easier than making individual muffins, and I’m all for ease.

The cake is a spinoff on the Blueberry Muffin and Buttermilk Pancakes Cake I made last week.

I loved that little cake so much, and when I noticed a countertop full of ripe peaches and nectarines, I knew I had to bake them into a cake.

The cake batter comes together in 5 minutes without a mixer.

Nothing complicated, fussy, or time-consuming. It’s standard muffin batter with a bowl of dry ingredients and a bowl of wet. Pour the wet over the dry, stir in the fruit, pour into a pan, and bake.

I used one white peach and one nectarine, but feel free to mix and match with your favorites like apricots, plums, pluots, and plucots. I love all the fruit hydrids that come into season this time of year. I’m counting down the days to persimmons season.

I used fresh fruit rather than frozen like last time, and about 15 minutes was shaved off the baking time.

Baking times will range based on how juicy your fruit is, but I would estimate 35 to 40 minutes. Watch your cake, not the clock, when determining if the fluffy little number is done.

For me this was a sub 45-minute start-to-finish cake. The quicker I can get tender, falling-apart-soft cake into my belly, the happier I am.

With 2 cups of fruit, and just over 1 cup of flour, this cake is very heavy on the juicy, succulent fruit, and it stays supremely moist.

There’s also sour cream, buttermilk, and oil to help keep it tender and soft.

The crumb is light and fluffy like a delicate muffin with just enough density from the fruit to be so satisfying.

It’s the kind of cake you keep chipping away at to straighten the rows.

It’s perfect for brunches, special events, or as a small everyday-cake, which takes advantage of seasonal fruit.

You know, all that fruit you buy because it all looks so good at the store, and then all that fruit all ripens on the same day. And you’re left scrambling and wondering what to do with it.

Now you know what to do.

Make this cake.

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This cake tastes like one big, soft, fluffy, peach muffin. It's ridiculously moist, tender, and falling-apart soft. The batter comes together in minutes without a mixer. Baking one cake is faster than making individual muffins, and this is a great cake when you're short on time. It's perfect for brunches, special events, or as a small everyday-cake, taking advantage of seasonal fruit. Feel free to mix and match with your favorites like nectarines, apricots, or plums.

Yield: one 8x8 pan, 8 generous wedges

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: about 40 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
pinch salt, optional and to taste
1 large egg
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup sour cream (thick, full-fat Greek yogurt may be substituted)
3 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 medium/large ripe fresh peaches diced small (1 3/4 to 2 cups, diced) - Or a combo of nectarines, apricots, plums, pluots, plucots. I used 1 white peach and 1 nectarine and did not peel them
confectioners' sugar, optional for dusting or see glaze suggestions below

Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8-inch square pan with aluminum foil and spray with cooking spray; set aside.In a medium bowl, whisk together the first 6 dry ingredients (through optional salt); set aside.In a separate small bowl, whisk together the next 5 wet ingredients (through vanilla).Add the wet mixture to the dry, mixing lightly with a spoon or folding with a spatula until just combined. Lumps will be present and this is okay. Don't overmix or try to stir them smooth.Gently and briefly fold in the fresh fruit. (Recipe may be made with frozen fruit added directly to batter without thawing first, and you will need to increase the baking time possibly by as much as 20 minutes as outlined here)Bake until done, probably 35 to 40 minutes, but watch your cake, not the clock. Bake until center is slightly domed and set, golden in color, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter. At any time your cake is beginning to look a bit too golden brown before you suspect the center will set up, tent it with a sheet of foil laid across the top. I baked for 37 minutes total, and at the 30 minute mark, I tented with foil. Baking times will range dramatically based on types of fruit used, how juicy it is, and how much water it releases into the batter.Place pan on a wire rack and allow cake to cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving. Optionally, dust with confectioners' sugar or a simple glaze. This lemon glaze, this buttery vanilla glaze, this browned butter glaze, or this vanilla cream cheese glaze are all excellent, quick, and easy options.Cake will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Adapted from my Blueberry Muffin and Buttermilk Pancakes Cake

Recipe from Averie Cooks. All images and content are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to republish this recipe, please re-write the recipe in your own words, or simply link back to this post for the recipe. Thank you.

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