Who’s dreaming of summer? In Florida, we almost live in a perpetual state of summer, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t miss those summer fruits and flavors! I’m lucky that I have access to decent (and not ridiculously expensive) blueberries year round, but this recipe will work with frozen berries, too. It will also work with pretty much any fruit you can get your hands on. It’s basically just muffins in tray-bake form. It’s easy, versatile, and delicious!
I’ve made this recipe (from Alexandra’s Kitchen) three times so far this year, but I’ve waited until now to post about it. For starters, I could never figure out how I wanted to photograph it, and it somehow disappears before I decide that I didn’t like any of the photos. We’re also trying to get baby girl to eat finger foods. We’ve been unsuccessful thus far, and that means I end up with lots of blueberries that almost go bad in the fridge. When they get to the point where they aren’t quite firm enough to enjoy as is, they go into this cake. It’s like what people who like bananas do with banana bread. (I can’t stand bananas, and have never made banana bread!)
I’ve also tried it with and without the lemon zest. My husband prefers it with lemon; I like it both ways. My mom and I have discussed it: she never liked lemon in baked goods, so I probably grew up without it in a lot of things. I think it adds a bright punch of flavor, but I don’t necessarily miss it when it’s not there. All this to say that the lemon is optional. Add it if you like it, don’t if you don’t! This is good both ways.
If you do add the lemon zest, you add it with the butter and the sugar when creaming them together in the first step.
Don’t forget to set aside a Tablespoon of sugar to sprinkle over the top!
Add the eggs and vanilla. Add 1/2 of the dry ingredients, then add all the buttermilk, then the other 1/2 of the dry ingredients. It could not get ANY easier!
Toss your blueberries with flour. This will prevent them from all sinking to the bottom while the cake bakes. If you’ve used an electric mixer to mix the batter (which I recommend, especially for creaming the butter and sugar), make switch to a spatula to fold in the blueberries. Be gentle, especially if you’re using blueberries that are slightly less than firm. If there is any leftover flour in the bottom of the bowl, toss out the extra.
If you haven’t read my other blog posts where I talk about proper parchment use, now is the time to adapt to this technique! For this kind of bake, I cut the parchment to fit the bottom and then overlap up the sides so I can pull the whole thing out of the pan. I don’t know about you, but I’m not a fan of the knife marks that accrue over time on the bottom of my square cake pans. This solves that issue. You can pull the whole thing out once it cools, cut it cleanly with a sharp knife, and store the leftovers (ha! leftovers…) in anything you choose! No more scrapes on your pan and no more storing leftover cake in the tin you baked it in.
Remember the sugar you set aside? Sprinkle that over the top after you’ve spread the batter as evenly as possible into the pan. The first time I made this, it seemed like a lot of sugar, and I only used about half. Trust me, use it all. It gives a wonderful texture and color to the top of the cake.
Bake until the cake is golden brown on top and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
I swear, this recipe will quickly become one of your go-to’s, especially during blueberry season when they are constantly on sale and easily accessible. I can’t wait until our You-Pick place opens up for the year. Hopefully the little one will be all about the blueberries by that time, too! This cake is an instant mainstay in my house already. It’s truly a winner!
Blueberry Breakfast Cake
A delicious and versatile cake, perfect for breakfast and brunch, and adaptable for any seasonal fruit. Recipe compliments of alexandracooks.com
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (one stick) Unsalted Butter, room temperature
- Zest from 1 Lemon
- 1 cup Sugar (set aside 1 Tbsp for sprinkling)
- 1 Egg, room temperature
- 1 tsp Vanilla
- 2 cups All-Purpose Flour (set aside 1/4 cup to toss with blueberries
- 2 tsp Baking Powder
- 1 tsp Kosher Salt
- 2 cups Blueberries
- 1/2 cup Buttermilk
Directions
- Step 1 Preheat oven to 350F
- Step 2 Cream butter and sugar (minus the 1 Tbsp) together with the lemon zest, if using, until fluffy
- Step 3 Add egg and vanilla and beat until combined
- Step 4 Toss blueberries with 1/4 cup of flour. Combine remainder of flour together with baking powder and salt
- Step 5 Add dry ingredient mixture and buttermilk to batter in this order: half dry ingredients, all the buttermilk, other half dry ingredients. Mix in between each incorporation, scraping down the sides of the bowl when needed, until all ingredient is absorbed before moving to the next one
- Step 6 Gently fold blueberries into batter with a spatula. Discard any loose flour not sticking to blueberries
- Step 7 Grease a 8×8 baking pan with butter or non stick spray. Line pan with parchment on the bottom and up two of the sides. Lightly grease parchment again. Spread batter evenly into the pan and sprinkle with reserved sugar
- Step 8 Bake for 35-40 minutes until top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean
- Step 9 Let cool for 15 minutes before serving
Recent Comments