Mascarpone Cake with Mixed Berries

My love for mascarpone started when I discovered mascarpone ice cream quite a long time ago. Rich, buttery, creamy, and smooth, its flavor is distinct and less tangy than cream cheese. It goes perfectly with fresh fruit in tarts and pies, and it’s of course excellent in a mascarpone cheese cake.

Why you’ll love this recipe

• It’s super easy and quick to make – you don’t need any special equipment or tools to whip this up yourselves. Except, perhaps, a cast iron skillet — I assume that most of you have one of those at home. If you don’t, you can still make this mascarpone cake, but you’ll have to bake it in a regular metal baking dish.
• The final results are really soft and moist – plus, it stores well in the refrigerator and will stay moist for days. As a note, mascarpone is a type of Italian cheese, but the texture here isn’t exactly like a cheesecake (it’s lighter and airier). This is a recipe for a mascarpone cheese cake — that space between the two words is very important!
• So versatile – it’s great as a coffee cake as well as a dessert. I’ve made this for guests in the past, and they all loved it.
• The mixed berries add a nice freshness to the cake – I’m using a combination of blueberries and raspberries. You can use the same, or feel free to incorporate some blackberries or strawberries too.

Tools you’ll need

As mentioned, this yummy berry mascarpone cake is extremely easy to make. It does not require any fancy kitchen equipment. I would actually discourage you from using a stand mixer for this recipe (even though I love mine to death) to avoid over-mixing the cake batter.

• A cast iron skillet to bake the cake. You can use an 8-inch skillet or a 9-inch skillet. Again, you can use a regular baking pan or a springform pan if you don’t have one.
• A kitchen scale is useful to measure out the ingredients in exact quantities.
• A whisk for mixing, I recommend mixing this cake batter by hand.
• A spatula also for mixing and spreading the mascarpone cake mixture into the cast iron skillet.

Ingredients and Substitutions

As always, you’ll find the complete list of ingredients and quantities in the recipe card at the end of this post. Below are some notes and substitution tips:

1. All-purpose Flour – The base of your mascarpone berry cake. All-purpose works great here, but you can use your favorite gluten-free 1:1 substitute if you need to. Note that I have not tried gluten-free myself, but readers have use the substitution with success in many other of my recipes.

2. Granulated Sugar – Adds a touch of sweetness to the overall cake. I don’t use a whole lot of sugar here so the cake is not overly sweet. Some readers even reduced the sugar further and still ended up with great results.

3. Mascarpone Cheese – It wouldn’t be a mascarpone cake without mascarpone cheese. This is the star of the show, so do your best to find high-quality options. There are usually just 2 options in the grocery stores where I live, Cello and BelGioioso. Either will be just fine for this recipe, though I tend to prefer Cello. I don’t recommend replacing it, as it is the main ingredient, but the closest substitute is cream cheese. It will be tangier, but the texture will be similar.

4. Baking Powder – The leavening agent in this mascarpone cheese cake! Don’t skip it or you’ll end up with some less desirable results. Also, make sure your baking powder is not too old.

5. Eggs – Helps bind the ingredients together.

6. Butter – I like unsalted butter here to have more control over the sodium content. If you only have salted, you can reduce the amount of salt added by about half.

7. Salt – I use kosher salt here. It has larger granules so if you’re using table salt, you’ll want to reduce the amount.

8. Orange & Vanilla Extracts – Orange extract adds a touch of bright citrus flavor, while vanilla brings a warmth that rounds out the other flavors. If you can’t find any orange extract, you can use orange zest. You could also vary the flavor by using lemon zest, or lemon extract, or even almond extract.

9. Berries – Again, any type of berries will work. I used raspberries and blueberries because that’s what I had in my fridge at the time. I also like the different colors in the mix. Strawberries and blackberries would make a nice substitution, or any combination you’d like, really.

How to Make Mascarpone Cake

The following instructions, step-by-step photos, and tips are here to help you visualize how to make the recipe. You can always skip straight to the printable recipe card at the end of this post.

First, bring the eggs and mascarpone cheese to room temperature before you get started. Melt the butter and brush some of it on the cast iron skillet and let the rest cool down before whisking all the wet ingredients together into a smooth mixture.

Sift together the dry ingredients in a separate mixing bowl and add it to the wet ingredients. Incorporate using a spatula to form the cake batter.

Tip: Don’t over-mix in this step, fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just incorporated, the batter does not need to be perfectly smooth. Overmixing can result in a tough cake due to overdevelopment of gluten.

Now fold in ⅔ of the berries, using a light hand as not to smash them too much. Transfer to the buttered cast iron skillet.

Smooth out the the batter using your spatula and sprinkle the rest of the berries on top. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 45-47 minutes until golden and an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

More baker’s tips

• Reducing the amount of sugar – This cake is not too sweet to begin but some of my readers have reduced the amount of sugar even further, as low as ⅓ cup, with success.
• Use the correct amount of berries – The recipe calls for 1 cup of berries total, don’t be overzealous and add more berries than called for. Berries add moisture and can make your cake too wet when baked.
• Baking pan size – My mascarpone cake rose just a smidge above the side of my 8-inch cast iron skillet with a 2 ½-inch side, so don’t use anything smaller than that or risk the batter spilling over. Another trick a reader mentioned is to build up the side of your cake pan by lining it with parchment paper or foil if the side is a bit on the short side. A larger pan will result in a thinner cake layer and will take less time to cook, so be sure to check the doneness of your cake accordingly. For a 9-inch pan, check around the 35-40 minute mark.
• Doubling the recipe – You can easily double this mixed berry cake recipe to serve a big crowd. I did this for my daughter’s birthday and baked it in a 9″x13″ pan. The cake was done in about 35 minutes.

Storage

Let your mascarpone berry cake cool completely before placing it in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap. You can store leftovers in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. The berries may soften over time, but the flavor will stay the same!

You can also freeze this cake for longer storage. Wrap the cooled cake in plastic wrap and then again in foil. When properly stored, it will keep in the freezer for about 2 months. Let it thaw in the fridge overnight before serving.

Remove the cake from the cast iron skillet before storing! I don’t recommend storing leftovers in the skillet in the fridge since a lot of moisture can ruin your pan.

FAQs

More mixed berry recipes

• Cinnamon Swirl Bread with Mixed Berries
• Mixed Berry Cobbler
• Mixed Berry Compote
• Mixed Berry Pie
• Berries and Cream Shortcake

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