Cake

• 7 ounces (1¾ sticks) unsalted butter, cut into cubes, at room temperature
• 9 ounces (1 cup plus 2 tablespoons) granulated sugar
• Grated zest of 2 large or 3 small blood oranges
• Grated zest of 1 lemon
• 10 ounces (2¾ cup) almond meal
• 5 large eggs, at room temperature
• 3½ ounces (¾ cup) all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
• 2 teaspoons ground fennel seed (optional)
• Pinch of salt
• 3 to 4 blood oranges, thinly sliced into rounds, rind removed, for the top of the cake

Blood Orange Syrup

• Juice of 2 large or 3 small blood oranges
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1/3 cup sugar

Looking for a chocolate frosting that's not too sweet or cloying? This is it, my friends. For those of you who are non-frosting lovers, this light, not-too-sweet frosting with a hint of salt will be your new favorite! It whips up easily with SideSwipe and spreads with just a swish of your spatula. We didn't even need a crumb coat!

This recipe, slightly adapted from Brian Hart Hoffman's Bake From Scratch book, is our new go-to frosting. This recipe generously frosts a single 9-inch layer cake or about 12 cupcakes. You'll need more for more layers or if you plan to do towering frosting on your cupcakes. We, being in the less-is-more frosting camp, need less. 

The recipe calls for buttermilk, which adds a tang to your frosting, but you can substitute whole milk or heavy cream if you like. The frosting will still be light and delicious.

Hint: We recommend that you weigh your powdered sugar so you don't add too much. If you don't have a digital kitchen scale, whisk up your sugar a bit before measuring. Confectioners' sugar is notorious for sinking and getting heavier as it sits.
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Want to bake your cake and eat it too? You can stick to your healthier eating resolution with this reduced calorie berry cake. The calorie reduction comes from very little fat in the cake and the substitution of stevia for much of the sugar. Sounds bland and dry, doesn't it? Well, it's not! It's a moist, dense, flavorful cake that will please even your crazy friends that don't worry about calories!

We cheated a little for our photos by adding a simple sugar glaze, but this cake is just as delicious without it. The directions are a little unusual, so read the instructions before assembling your dry ingredients. We found that the technique of cutting your butter into your dry ingredients did make a difference in the even distribution of fat in the cake. Give it a try and let us know what you think.

This recipe is easily adaptable for any types of berries you have on hand. We used a combination of frozen strawberries and blueberries and fresh blueberries (we're cleaning out the freezer!). We've made it in the summer with fresh blueberries, raspberries and blackberries and it was lovely that way, as well. Softer berries tend to bleed and/or disappear into the batter, but the cake will still look good and taste even better.

Our berry cake was adapted from a recipe by Marlene Koch in Eat More of What You Love. We made the cake in a fancy rose bundt pan, but any 10-inch bundt or tube pan will do.

Makes 12 servings (1 slice): Calories 210.  Carb 28g (Sugars 7g).  Total Fat 8g (Sat fat 3g).  Protein 5g. Fiber 1g. Cholesterol 25mg.  Sodium 140mg.  Food exchanges: 2 starch, 1 fat. 
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CAKE

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/3 cup cold butter or butter substitute, cut into tiny diced bits
• 2 cups fresh or frozen berries
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 2 large egg whites, room temperature
• 1-1/4 cups granulated no-calorie sweetener (like Stevia or Splenda) 
• 3 Tablespoons brown sugar
• 1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup low -fat sour cream or plain or vanilla Greek yogurt
• 10-inch tube or bundt pan

STREUSEL or ADD-INS for bundt cake

• 1/3 cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
• 1/4 cup sweetener (tube cake only)
• 2 Tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons powdered sugar for dusting baked cake

This cheesecake will really wow your guests at any winter gathering. The intense red color comes from boxed red velvet cake mix and an entire large container of no-taste red gel food coloring. The crust is made from crushed chocolate sandwich cookies (you know the brand). This dessert is a hearty one, so a standard size cheesecake will serve at least 12 people.

The addition of the cake mix makes it necessary to use a water bath with this cheesecake. We forgot to add it  with this particular cake, and you can see that it sank and had huge cracks in it. You can avoid this by following our directions and using the water bath! If you do still get cracks, you can always top the cake with whipped cream or just go with it, like we did and call it "rustic." It's still delicious!

Our red velvet cheesecake stores well in the fridge for several days and can be frozen for up to three months if well wrapped.

You can see below what happens when you don't use a water bath. Go dry at your own risk :)