A moist blueberry-filled cake that has a crisp, flavorful topping. It is delicious plain, but is spectacular when topped with lightly sweetened whipped cream. Although when I cook I usually choose foods that are in season, this blueberry cake can be a welcome reminder of summer when it is served in the late fall or winter, so I sometimes make it with frozen blueberries.
SERVES 12
2 cups unbleached white flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
ВЅ teaspoon salt
2 cups (1 pint) fresh blueberries, rinsed and patted dry, or unthawed frozen berries
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
ВЅ teaspoon almond extract
2 eggs
1 cup milk
STREUSEL
в…“ cup unbleached white flour
в…“ cup sugar
ВЅ teaspoon cinnamon
4 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into bits
Lightly sweetened whipped cream
- Preheat the oven to 375В°F. Generously butter and flour a 12 x 7 x 2-inch baking pan and set aside. (If you are using a glass dish, then set the oven at 350В°F.) Try to time the baking so that the cake can come out of the oven about 30 minutes before you begin eating.
- Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl and mix well. Add the blueberries and gently toss to coat.
- Cream the butter with the sugar, vanilla, and almond extract in a medium bowl until well blended. Add the eggs and mix. Carefully add the milk and beat just until blended.
- Add this wet mixture to the flour mixture and stir by hand just until blended. Pour into the prepared cake pan.
- To make the streusel: Mix the flour, sugar, and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Cut the butter in with a pastry cutter or two knives until the mixture is evenly blended but still crumbly. Sprinkle evenly onto the cake batter.
- Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the top is evenly golden and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before removing from the pan. Invert onto a plate or platter and then flip again right side up onto another plate or platter. Serve warm or at room temperature plain or with lightly sweetened whipped cream.