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Wednesday, February 4, 2015

Blueberry Crumb Cake inspired by Ina Garten

Blueberry Crumb Cake

I love this blueberry crumb cake. Its not too sweet, plus its moist, delicious and bursting with blueberry goodness. And, well, anything with crumble on top has to be good, right?
Im a big fan of Ina Gartens so when I was at the farmers market this past weekend and realized that it would be the last time this season to pick up fresh, wild blueberries - I immediately thought, "Ive got to make Inas Blueberry Crumb Cake" and picked some up.
This crumb cake is excellent with a freshly brewed cup of coffee in the morning, or equally wonderful as a dessert - perhaps with a dollop of freshly whipped vanilla or lemon-scented cream.


pretty with a few sprigs of mint
ingredients for crumble


Makes 1 (9-inch) round cake
Oven 350 degrees F
Prep: 
  • 2 extra-large eggs at room temperature (still in shells, make sure there are no cracks)
  • 3/4 stick butter at room temperature/softened, plus 1 stick butter melted
  • (I leave the butter and the eggs out on the counter the night before)
  • butter and flour the inside of a 9-inch round cake pan (I use the wrapper from the butter to coat the pan)
Crumble:
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
Combine sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg in a bowl. Stir in melted butter and then flour. Mix until it becomes a crumbly texture, then set aside.
Cake:
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature (3/4 stick)
3/4 cup sugar
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest (zest of about 1/2 lemon)
2/3 cup sour cream (Ive also used 2/3 cup Greek yogurt and the result is the same)
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup fresh blueberries
confectioners sugar (powdered sugar) for sprinkling
Cream butter and sugar together using electric mixer with paddle attachment (or hand mixer) on high speed. Reduce speed to low and add eggs one at a time. Then add vanilla, lemon zest, and sour cream.

Tips: 1) Place sifter over bowl and add flour, then add baking powder,
baking soda, and salt in little piles so you can tell what
youve already added. 2) Lightly coat blueberries in a little
of the flour to help prevent sinking.
then sift dry ingredients into bowl

In separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With mixer on low speed add flour mixture to batter until just combined - do not overmix. With spatula, gently fold in the blueberries and stir until evenly spread throughout the batter.
Spoon batter into prepared pan and spread out evenly. Place the crumble mixture evenly over the batter and bake for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on rack and then remove from pan and dust top with confectioners sugar. Excellent served warm, too.
Baking Tip:  Baking is a science and ingredients must be measured carefully. The most accurate way to measure is by weight. Im particularly careful with flour because the weight has a tendency to fluctuate based on how compacted it is. If you dont have a scale that measures by weight and converts to quantity measurements, just use this method - fluff the flour with a spoon, then drop spoonfulls into your measuring cup until its over-filled and using the straight edge of a knife or spatula level the top, being careful not to compact it. This will usually get you very close.
Also, if youre having trouble with your baking, be sure to invest in an inexpensive oven temperature guage. Chances are its not your baking expertise, but rather fluctuations in the temperature of your oven. Some ovens have hot spots, and others can be a few degrees off. With baking it all matters.

eat dessert first!

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