Ingredients

Cake

• 150 g unsalted butter
• 150 g golden caster sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 100 g self-raising flour
• 100 g ground almonds
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 pinch fine salt
• 3 tbsp whole milk
• 250 g blackberries

Topping

• 25 g flaked almonds
• 1 tbsp demerara sugar
• 1 tbsp icing sugarfor dusting

Method

1. 01

   Heat the oven to 180 C (160 C fan). Grease a 20 cm springform tin and line the base with baking paper.

2. 02

   Melt the butter in a small pan over a medium heat and keep it bubbling, swirling, for 5 to 6 minutes until it smells nutty and brown flecks settle on the bottom. Scrape it all into a bowl, flecks included, and cool for 15 minutes.

   Keep the flecksThe brown bits at the bottom of the pan are where all the nutty flavour is.

3. 03

   Whisk the eggs and sugar with an electric whisk for 3 to 4 minutes until pale and thick. Whisk in the vanilla, then pour in the warm brown butter in a thin stream, whisking all the time.

   Warm, not hotHot butter cooks the eggs. Fifteen minutes of cooling is enough.

4. 04

   Fold in the flour, ground almonds, baking powder and salt, then the milk, until just combined.

5. 05

   Spread half the batter in the tin and scatter over half the blackberries. Cover with the rest of the batter, press the remaining berries lightly into the top and sprinkle with the flaked almonds and demerara.

   Berries in layersHalf inside and half on top means fruit in every slice, not all sunk to the bottom.

6. 06

   Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until golden and a skewer comes out clean apart from berry juice. Cool in the tin for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a rack.

7. 07

   Dust with icing sugar and serve warm with cream or creme fraiche.