Moist & Easy Peach Cake recipe

This moist & easy Peach cake recipe is probably the simplest and most delicious cake to make over the summer when sweet and fragrant peaches are in season. Super moist yogurt cake base loaded with peaches and topped with a simple peach thyme compote is the ultimate easy cake recipe to make. I love everything about this homemade Peach cake! It is easy and quick to make, fruity and even slightly floral due to aromatic thyme added to the topping! This is also a super a super light and refreshing Peach cake, and did I mention how moist it is? You will love it!

I feel that apart from peach pie and crumble, peach is rather under utilised in dessert recipes and could be used more often. So, I created this super easy Peach cake recipe that can be the perfect teacake or even a casual celebration cake over summer! Even if you are a beginner in the kitchen, you will nail this, I am sure! Let´s get started.

My Top 5 Baking Tips for home bakers

1. Read the recipe carefully including my tips and recommendations on how to avoid and fix typical issues during baking this easy homemade Peach cake recipe. A short recipe alone not able to call out all the details that you need to pay attention to while baking therefore most of my recipes contain important information about ingredients and technique
2. Avoid using substitutes and changing the recipe unless you are aware of how to fully reformulate the recipe in order to keep the balance in texture as well as flavour. In general, replacing egg, using gluten-free flour, skipping certain ingredients etc. will all have an impact on your Peach cake and sadly I am not able to provide substitutes for all sort of allergies and dietary requirements
3. For consistent, happy baking experience always measure your ingredients with the help of a Digital scale. Cup measurement is provided as an indicative figure only and might be used for less complex and large batch recipes however it is not an appropriate method if you want consistent results
4. Did you know that most home ovens can significantly under or oven run? Also, oven temperature hugely drops when opening the oven door therefore it is recommended to always pre-heat the oven above the required baking temperature.
5. Temperature is so important when it comes to baking and accurate oven temperature is key, can make or break any recipe. Make sure you invest into an inexpensive Digital oven thermometer to avoid under baked, burnt, sad looking cakes like this Peach cake

Some important notes regarding the INGREDIENTS of this moist Peach cake recipe

For the cake

1. Oil: this is an oil based Peach cake (no butter) that keeps the the cake super moist, soft and fluffy. Butter based cakes tend to harden a lot in the fridge, with oil we won’t have this issue. Use no flavour vegetable oil
2. Sugar: I am using simple granulated sugar in here. If you want to learn about the different types of sugar and how to use them in baking, please read my article in here
3. Egg: Room temperature as always
4. Yogurt: Use high fat content Greek or Turkish style thick yogurt. Its creaminess helps keep to keep your Peach cake so moist that you won´t be able to stop just after one slice
5. Flour: I am using pasty flour but AP works too, they are so called “soft flour” which are low on protein resulting in delicate, tender texture. If you want to be a Pro when it comes to deciding what type of flour to use in your baking, please read my article in here
6. Baking powder + Baking soda: Makes the cake tender and helps the rise
7. Salt: We always need at least a pinch of salt in any cake batter to balance the flavours, if it was chocolate cake, even more!
8. Peach: Cut peach into small pieces. You might feel tempted to add more however too much fruit makes the cake too wet and difficult to bake so please stick to the quantity stated in the recipe

For the Peach thyme compote

1. Fruit: This is a Peach cake so you will need some peach to make the compote topping. Use regular peaches or nectarine can work too. I find it looks better if the compote is a mixture of puree and fruit pieces. Will give instructions on this in the recipe card
2. Thyme: If you have not tried pairing fresh thyme with peach, you are seriously missing out! Honestly, I am not a huge fan of thyme on meat but with peach, it takes that fruit to a completely different level! Please don´t leave it out
3. Sugar: Simple white granulated sugar is working perfectly fine
4. Lemon juice: Juice of lemon, freshly squeezed. Remember, lemon juice balances the flavours, just like salt in the cake
5. Gelatine sheet: It´s an odorless, tasteless and colorless thickening agent, very often used by pastry chefs particularly in mousse cakes. Powder or sheet versions are available, in my recipes I always use sheet (1,7 g / sheet), which I found easier to handle. You can replace it by equal gelatin powder of the same weight. If using sheet, simple soak the gelatine sheet into cold water for a few minutes before you need them and use it according to the recipe. Please note that gelatine is not suitable for vegetarians. Agar agar can be a good substitution for vegetarians however replacing gelatine with agar agar is not 1:1 and can only be done by reformulating the recipe slightly.

4 tips regarding the TECHNIQUE of making this super moist Peach Cake recipe

1. How to make Peach cake homemade

This is a wonderful and easy Yogurt based cake recipe you can use with various fruits eg. apple, pear, cherry, strawberry etc. A super moist, fluffy cake with velvety crumb, incredible delicious. It is also easy to prepare, key is not to overwork the batter.

• Ingredients must be all measures with a Digital scale
• Prepare baking pan 15 cm (6 inch) round cake pan with parchment paper
• Pre-heat oven to 180 C / 356°F
• Eggs as well yogurt must be on room temperature, yogurt can form lumps easily if used cold
• Whisk oil, egg, yogurt and the sugar just until combined
• Sift dry ingredients together (flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt) before adding to the mixture, whisk just until combined
• Then fold in peach pieces
• Pour cake batter into prepared baking pan and bake for 30 minutes. Do not open the oven door during baking
• After 30 minutes check the middle of the cake with a toothpick . Bake until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let it cool on a cooling rack

Can I make this Peach cake in a bigger cake pan?

Yes, you can however you need to adjust quantities and baking time

How do I know that my cake is well baked?

After about 30 minutes (each oven is different) you really need to check the middle of the cake. When toothpick inserted it should come out clean. If cake is not well baked, it will collapse after baking

2. How to easily release cake from cake pan

There is nothing worst than a beautiful cake stuck in the cake pan! Never again! How to avoid it?

With the help of a pastry brush, brush the inside of the cake pan with a tiny bit of oil then use parchment paper on the bottom and side as well. The oil only needed for the parchment to stick to the pan. What I love about this pan preparation is that no matter what cake I bake, with the help of the parchment paper it is always incredible easy to release the cake from the pan. Make sure you do the cake pan preparation before starting to mix the ingredients!

3. How to make the Peach thyme compote topping for the cake

I love making this compote, it is sweet, fruity and floral at the same time and gives a perfect addition to your Yogurt Pach cake! It is easy and so delicious, you will love it! This compote will be used as another layer on the cake therefore some stability is required in its structure – some thickening agent must be used, I am using gelatin sheet.

• Prepare and cut peaches and make the peach puree
• Soak gelatine sheets into cold water
• Cook peach, peach puree, some fresh thyme, sugar, lemon juice in a saucepan over medium heat for 5 minutes
• Remove saucepan from heat, squeeze excess water from gelatine sheets and stir them into fruit compote

I am using a 15cm / 6 inch tin, make sure to adjust the quantity of the apple compote and other ingredients if you are using a larger cake tin.

Can I make this topping without gelatin?

Yes, you can however need to use another thickening agent. agar agar or starch. As you can imagine the fruit puree needs to thicken otherwise it would not set on top of the cake

4. How to assemble this homemade Peach thyme cake

First and foremost make sure your cake is cooled even chilled in the fridge for half an hour. Place chilled cake into a Mousse cake ring (adjustable in size) set to 15cm / 6 inch, use Acetate cake collar around the ring inside for neat looking end results. Alternatively use a spring form.

Pour warm but not hot compote over the cake and smooth the top with an Offset spatula. Chill for 4 hours then carefully remove the mousse ring and acetate cake collar.

This Peach cake is really low key and does not need fridge unless you want to keep it for days – that would be rather a shame! Eat it fresh while it is super moist and creamy!

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