Everybody Has a Little Fruitcake in 'Em

First off, I want to let everybody know that Martha Stewart is the genius behind the foundations of this recipe, AND if I wouldn't have forgotten to add flour to her recipe for Raspberry Pistachio cupcakes (which can be found on her website), I would not of had the idea to make one giant cake from all of the same ingredients, with a substitution of blackberries for the raspberries (which I used up in the inedible cupcakes sans flour the night before). I consider myself to not be a very good baker, probably because I forget logical ingredients (like flour) when I'm following a recipe. This recipe was a happy accident, and a complete experiment, but I think I like the idea of it better than the cupcake recipe because all of the batter goes into one giant cake pan (rather than cutesy little cupcakes), and the blackberries are a little more toned down in intensity compared to the raspberries (plus they were the only other berry I had in the fridge). For all of those pistachio addicts out there that just can't seem to figure out a good excuse for incorporating pistachios into dishes or desserts, this is a great way to welcome them in. My thinking is that you can probably alter this recipe back to cupcakes (with less cooking time and higher oven temperatures), or alter the ingredients with different types of nuts and berries . . . whatever combination sounds delicious.

For this recipe you will need:

1 cup of flour, sifted into a bowl

1 stick of butter, softened

2 TB pure vanilla extract

1 tsp salt

2.5 C organic can sugar (or regular sugar if you don't have a Trader Joe's!)

4 large brown eggs (regular eggs are fine too)

1-2 C of ripe blackberries

1 1/4 C whole and sliced unsalted raw pistachios (oven roasted should work fine too)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Setting aside 1/4 C of sliced pistachios, combine 1 C of whole pistachios, sugar, and salt in a food processor until finely ground.

2. Add vanilla, eggs, and softened butter to mix and process until smooth.

3. Add flour (don't forget like I did), and pulse just enough until combined.

4. Pour mix into a cake pan (I used a spring-form circular pan, but any cake pan should work), and spread evenly along surface with spatula.

5. Press blackberries into surface, sprinkling evenly, and sprinkle sliced pistachios into empty spaces.

6. Bake for about 1 hour (or less depending on the oven).

7. Turn oven off, and let the cake cool down in oven for about 15 minutes.

8. Slice and serve, or store in an airtight tupperware container for up to 4 days.

This is the original raspberry/pistachio cupcake recipe:

http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/pistachio-cupcakes-with-raspberries